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NAVIGATION
Ukraine
Ukrayina
INTRODUCTION
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Background:
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Ukraine was the center of the first Slavic state, Kievan Rus, which during the 10th and 11th centuries was the largest and most powerful state in Europe. Weakened by internecine quarrels and Mongol invasions, Kievan Rus was incorporated into the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and eventually into the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. The cultural and religious legacy of Kievan Rus laid the foundation for Ukrainian nationalism through subsequent centuries. A new Ukrainian state, the Cossack Hetmanate, was established during the mid-17th century after an uprising against the Poles. Despite continuous Muscovite pressure, the Hetmanate managed to remain autonomous for well over 100 years. During the latter part of the 18th century, most Ukrainian ethnographic territory was absorbed by the Russian Empire. Following the collapse of czarist Russia in 1917, Ukraine was able to bring about a short-lived period of independence (1917-1920), but was reconquered and forced to endure a brutal Soviet rule that engineered two artificial famines (1921-22 and 1932-33) in which over 8 million died. In World War II, German and Soviet armies were responsible for some 7 to 8 million more deaths. Although independence was achieved in 1991 with the dissolution of the USSR, true freedom remains elusive, as many of the former Soviet elite remain entrenched, stalling efforts at economic reform, privatization, and civil liberties. |
GEOGRAPHY
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Location:
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Eastern Europe, bordering the Black Sea, between Poland and Russia |
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Geographic coordinates:
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49 00 N, 32 00 E |
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Map references:
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Asia, Europe |
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Area:
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total: 603,700 sq km
water: 0 sq km land: 603,700 sq km |
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Area - comparative:
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slightly smaller than Texas |
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Land boundaries:
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total: 4,663 km
border countries: Belarus 891 km, Hungary 103 km, Moldova 939 km, Poland 526 km, Romania (south) 169 km, Romania (west) 362 km, Russia 1,576 km, Slovakia 97 km |
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Coastline:
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2,782 km |
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Maritime claims:
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continental shelf: 200-m or to the depth of exploitation
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
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Climate:
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temperate continental; Mediterranean only on the southern Crimean coast; precipitation disproportionately distributed, highest in west and north, lesser in east and southeast; winters vary from cool along the Black Sea to cold farther inland; summers are warm across the greater part of the country, hot in the south |
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Terrain:
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most of Ukraine consists of fertile plains (steppes) and plateaus, mountains being found only in the west (the Carpathians), and in the Crimean Peninsula in the extreme south |
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Elevation extremes:
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lowest point: Black Sea 0 m
highest point: Hora Hoverla 2,061 m |
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Natural resources:
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iron ore, coal, manganese, natural gas, oil, salt, sulfur, graphite, titanium, magnesium, kaolin, nickel, mercury, timber, arable land |
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Land use:
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arable land: 57.1%
permanent crops: 1.73% other: 41.17% (1998 est.) |
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Irrigated land:
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24,540 sq km (1998 est.) |
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Natural hazards:
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NA |
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Environment - current issues:
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inadequate supplies of potable water; air and water pollution; deforestation; radiation contamination in the northeast from 1986 accident at Chornobyl' Nuclear Power Plant |
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Environment - international agreements:
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party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
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Geography - note:
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strategic position at the crossroads between Europe and Asia; second-largest country in Europe |
PEOPLE
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Population:
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48,055,439 (July 2003 est.) |
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Age structure:
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0-14 years: 16.3% (male 4,004,948; female 3,832,931)
15-64 years: 68.7% (male 15,779,735; female 17,225,103) 65 years and over: 15% (male 2,419,612; female 4,793,110) (2003 est.) |
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Median age:
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total: 38 years
male: 34.8 years female: 40.9 years (2002) |
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Population growth rate:
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-0.69% (2003 est.) |
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Birth rate:
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9.89 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
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Death rate:
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16.39 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
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Net migration rate:
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-0.41 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
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Sex ratio:
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at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.92 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.5 male(s)/female total population: 0.86 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
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Infant mortality rate:
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total: 20.87 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 19.48 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) male: 22.2 deaths/1,000 live births |
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Life expectancy at birth:
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total population: 66.5 years
male: 61.1 years female: 72.17 years (2003 est.) |
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Total fertility rate:
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1.34 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
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HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
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1% (2001 est.) |
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HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
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250,000 (2001 est.) |
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HIV/AIDS - deaths:
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11,000 (2001 est.) |
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Nationality:
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noun: Ukrainian(s)
adjective: Ukrainian |
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Ethnic groups:
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Ukrainian 77.8%, Russian 17.3%, Belarusian 0.6%, Moldovan 0.5%, Crimean Tatar 0.5%, Bulgarian 0.4%, Hungarian 0.3%, Romanian 0.3%, Polish 0.3%, Jewish 0.2%, other 1.8% (2001) |
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Religions:
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Ukrainian Orthodox - Moscow Patriarchate, Ukrainian Orthodox - Kiev Patriarchate, Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox, Ukrainian Catholic (Uniate), Protestant, Jewish |
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Languages:
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Ukrainian, Russian, Romanian, Polish, Hungarian |
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Literacy:
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definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99.7% male: 99.8% female: 99.6% (2003 est.) |