Portal:Ukraine
The Ukraine Portal - Портал України
Ukraine Україна (Ukrainian) | |
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ISO 3166 code | UA |
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which borders it to the east and northeast. It also borders Belarus to the north; Poland and Slovakia to the west; Hungary, Romania and Moldova to the southwest; with a coastline along the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov to the south and southeast. Kyiv is the nation's capital and largest city, followed by Kharkiv, Dnipro, and Odesa. Ukraine's official language is Ukrainian.
During the Middle Ages, Ukraine was the site of early Slavic expansion and the area later became a key centre of East Slavic culture under the state of Kievan Rus', which emerged in the 9th century. The state eventually disintegrated into rival regional powers and was destroyed by the Mongol invasions of the 13th century. The area was then contested, divided, and ruled by a variety of external powers for the next 600 years, including the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, the Austrian Empire, the Ottoman Empire, and the Tsardom of Russia. The Cossack Hetmanate emerged in central Ukraine in the 17th century, but was partitioned between Russia and Poland, and absorbed by the Russian Empire. Ukrainian nationalism developed and, following the Russian Revolution in 1917, the short-lived Ukrainian People's Republic was formed. The Bolsheviks consolidated control over much of the former empire and established the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic, which became a constituent republic of the Soviet Union when it was formed in 1922. In the early 1930s, millions of Ukrainians died in the Holodomor, a human-made famine. The German occupation during World War II in Ukraine was devastating, with 7 million Ukrainian civilians killed, including most Ukrainian Jews.
Ukraine gained independence in 1991 as the Soviet Union dissolved, and declared itself neutral. A new constitution was adopted in 1996. A series of mass demonstrations, known as the Euromaidan, led to the establishment of a new government in 2014 after a revolution. Russia then unilaterally annexed Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula, and pro-Russian unrest culminated in a war in the Donbas between Russian-backed separatists and government forces in eastern Ukraine. Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Since the outbreak of war with Russia, Ukraine has continued to seek closer ties with the United States, European Union, and NATO.
Ukraine is a unitary state and its system of government is a semi-presidential republic. A developing country, it is the poorest country in Europe by nominal GDP per capita and corruption remains a significant issue. However, due to its extensive fertile land, pre-war Ukraine was one of the largest grain exporters in the world. Ukraine is considered a middle power in global affairs, and the Ukrainian Armed Force is the fifth largest armed force in the world in terms of both active personnel as well as total number of personnel with the eighth largest defence budget in the world. The Ukrainian Armed Forces also operates one of the largest and most diverse drone fleets in the world. It is a founding member of the United Nations, as well as a member of the Council of Europe, the World Trade Organization, and the OSCE. It is in the process of joining the European Union and has applied to join NATO. (Full article...)
In the news
- 11 December 2024 – Russo-Ukrainian War
- Military aid to Ukraine during the Russo-Ukrainian War
- United States and the Russian invasion of Ukraine
- The United States Department of State approves a $266.4 million sale of F-16 maintenance equipment to Ukraine. (Ukrainska Pravda) (DSCA) (The Washington Times)
- The Parliament of Canada approves the allocation of CA$764 million (US$587 million) in military aid to Ukraine. (Ukrainska Pravda)
- 10 December 2024 – Russian invasion of Ukraine
- Southern front of the Russian invasion of Ukraine
- A Russian missile strike on a private clinic in Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine, kills four civilians and injures 20 others. (Interfax Ukraine) (Al Arabiya)
- 10 December 2024 – Belarus–Russia relations, Nuclear risk during the Russian invasion of Ukraine
- Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko confirms the presence of nuclear weapons in his country, including Russia's Oreshnik missile system. (AP)
- 10 December 2024 –
- The Russian Federal Security Service arrests a German-Russian man for allegedly planning to sabotage a rail line in Nizhny Novgorod, Russia, on behalf of the Security Service of Ukraine. (DW)
- 8 December 2024 – Russian invasion of Ukraine
- Casualties of the Russo-Ukrainian War
- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says that 43,000 Ukrainian soldiers have been killed in action since Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022 and that 370,000 soldiers have been injured, while estimating the number of Russian casualties at 198,000 soldiers killed and more than 550,000 soldiers injured. (Politico)
Featured pictures
Did you know (auto-generated)
- ... that J. T. Blatty was a tennis star and US Army captain before photographing military volunteers in Ukraine?
- ... that in March 2022 Sonja van den Ende was the only Dutch journalist to report from the Russian-occupied Donbas on the war in Ukraine?
- ... that Monika Buczkowska, who, as a student in Poznań, performed as Mozart's Susanna, was a soloist in Beethoven's Ninth Symphony at a charity concert for Ukraine at the Alte Oper?
- ... that street artist TVBoy, known for his murals of footballers in Barcelona, painted uplifting art in regions of Kyiv ahead of the one-year anniversary of the 2022 Russian invasion?
- ... that more than 200 Nobel Prize laureates have signed a letter against the war in Ukraine?
- ... that when a Russian warship asked the Ukrainian defenders of Snake Island to surrender, their response was "Russian warship, go fuck yourself"?
More did you know -
- ... that although the secular music of Mykola Leontovych was well known in the twentieth century, the Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom was little known because of a ban on sacred music in the Soviet Union?
- ... that among many historic landmarks at the Andrew's Descent in Kyiv, there is a medieval Gothic style castle that locals call the "Castle of Richard the Lion Heart" due to the legend the 12th century King of England had visited the building?
- ... that the Privat Group is one of the few Ukrainian companies that own industries in the United States?
- ... that Vasyl Avramenko is often referred as "The father of the Ukrainian dance"?
- ... that Ukrainian composer Mykola Leontovych (pictured), known for the "Carol of the Bells", was nicknamed "Ukrainian Bach" in France?
- ... that journalist Savik Shuster who used to work for Russian TV channels now prefers to work for the Ukrainian TV because he felt the Russian Government was limiting his journalistic freedom?
Selected article -
Sviatoslav or Svyatoslav I Igorevich (Old East Slavic: Свѧтославъ Игорєвичь, romanized: Svętoslavŭ Igorevičǐ; Old Norse: Sveinald; c. 943 – 972) was Prince of Kiev from 945 until his death in 972. He is known for his persistent campaigns in the east and south, which precipitated the collapse of two great powers in Eastern Europe, Khazaria and the First Bulgarian Empire. He conquered numerous East Slavic tribes, defeated the Alans and attacked the Volga Bulgars, and at times was allied with the Pechenegs and Magyars (Hungarians).
Following the death of his father Igor in 945, Sviatoslav's mother Olga reigned as regent in Kiev until 962. His decade-long reign over the Kievan Rus' was marked by rapid expansion into the Volga River valley, the Pontic steppe, and the Balkans, leading him to carve out for himself the largest state in Europe. In 969, he moved his seat to Pereyaslavets on the Danube. In 970, he appointed his sons Yaropolk and Oleg as subordinate princes of Kiev and Drelinia, while he appointed Vladimir, his son by his housekeeper and servant Malusha, as the prince of Novgorod. (Full article...)
In the news
- 11 December 2024 – Russo-Ukrainian War
- Military aid to Ukraine during the Russo-Ukrainian War
- United States and the Russian invasion of Ukraine
- The United States Department of State approves a $266.4 million sale of F-16 maintenance equipment to Ukraine. (Ukrainska Pravda) (DSCA) (The Washington Times)
- The Parliament of Canada approves the allocation of CA$764 million (US$587 million) in military aid to Ukraine. (Ukrainska Pravda)
- 10 December 2024 – Russian invasion of Ukraine
- Southern front of the Russian invasion of Ukraine
- A Russian missile strike on a private clinic in Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine, kills four civilians and injures 20 others. (Interfax Ukraine) (Al Arabiya)
- 10 December 2024 – Belarus–Russia relations, Nuclear risk during the Russian invasion of Ukraine
- Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko confirms the presence of nuclear weapons in his country, including Russia's Oreshnik missile system. (AP)
- 10 December 2024 –
- The Russian Federal Security Service arrests a German-Russian man for allegedly planning to sabotage a rail line in Nizhny Novgorod, Russia, on behalf of the Security Service of Ukraine. (DW)
- 8 December 2024 – Russian invasion of Ukraine
- Casualties of the Russo-Ukrainian War
- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says that 43,000 Ukrainian soldiers have been killed in action since Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022 and that 370,000 soldiers have been injured, while estimating the number of Russian casualties at 198,000 soldiers killed and more than 550,000 soldiers injured. (Politico)
Selected anniversaries for December
- December 1, 1991 — Ukraine's first presidential election takes place.
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