Ukraine
Located in eastern Europe, Ukraine is the second-largest country on the European continent after Russia.
GEOGRAPHY
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Most of Ukraine is flat, but the Carpathian Mountains stretch across part of the country's western border.
Ukraine, the second-largest country in Europe, is twice the size of Italy and slightly smaller than the state of Texas. Bordered on the south by the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov, Ukraine shares borders with the eastern European countries of Belarus, Hungary, Moldova, Poland, Romania, Russia, and Slovakia.
Most of Ukraine is flat, with mountains found only in the west (the Carpathians) or in the south of the Crimean Peninsula (the Crimeans). The country’s fertile plains, called steppes, are ideal for growing crops like wheat. Ukraine is sometimes called the “breadbasket of Europe.”
The Dnieper, Ukraine’s longest river and Europe’s fourth-longest river, flows down from Belarus straight through the middle of Ukraine and into the Black Sea in the south.
Most of Ukraine is flat, with mountains found only in the west (the Carpathians) or in the south of the Crimean Peninsula (the Crimeans). The country’s fertile plains, called steppes, are ideal for growing crops like wheat. Ukraine is sometimes called the “breadbasket of Europe.”
The Dnieper, Ukraine’s longest river and Europe’s fourth-longest river, flows down from Belarus straight through the middle of Ukraine and into the Black Sea in the south.
People and culture
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Kyiv, Ukraine’s capital, is home to the deepest metro station in the world, Arsenalna Metro Station. Riding the escalator to the bottom can take five minutes!
Despite being one of Europe’s largest countries in size, Ukraine’s population of about 43 million people makes it less populated than smaller European countries such as Germany and France. Most people are native Ukrainians, with Russians making up the next largest group. Belarusians and Moldovans live in the country, too.
Most Ukrainians are Christians, following a branch known as Eastern Orthodoxy. A small number of Ukrainians are Jewish or Muslim (people who practice Islam).
Most Ukrainians live in cities or towns. Kyiv, Ukraine’s capital and most populous city, is home to the deepest metro station in the world, Arsenalna Metro Station. Builders had to dig more than 340 feet to go under the Dnieper River—riding the escalator to the bottom can take five minutes!
Popular dishes in Ukraine include borscht, a hot beetroot soup traditionally served with garlic doughnuts; varenyky, dumplings stuffed with fillings like potatoes, sauerkraut, or strawberries; holubtsi, cabbage rolls stuffed with boiled rice or meat; and deruni, potato pancakes. A popular seasonal dish is paska, salted bread served during the Easter holiday.
Most Ukrainians are Christians, following a branch known as Eastern Orthodoxy. A small number of Ukrainians are Jewish or Muslim (people who practice Islam).
Most Ukrainians live in cities or towns. Kyiv, Ukraine’s capital and most populous city, is home to the deepest metro station in the world, Arsenalna Metro Station. Builders had to dig more than 340 feet to go under the Dnieper River—riding the escalator to the bottom can take five minutes!
Popular dishes in Ukraine include borscht, a hot beetroot soup traditionally served with garlic doughnuts; varenyky, dumplings stuffed with fillings like potatoes, sauerkraut, or strawberries; holubtsi, cabbage rolls stuffed with boiled rice or meat; and deruni, potato pancakes. A popular seasonal dish is paska, salted bread served during the Easter holiday.
Nature
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Beech martens, members of the weasel family, live throughout Ukraine.
Ukraine is home to fertile grasslands, high mountains, and dense forests. Native predators include wolves, martens, and foxes; they might prey on rodents like hamsters and jerboa. Black and hazel grouse, partridges, and wild geese soar the skies, and pike, carp, and sturgeons swim in Ukraine’s lakes and rivers.
In 1986, a nuclear accident had a devastating impact on northern Ukraine’s environment. A reactor at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant exploded, killing many people and animals in Ukraine. Contaminated farmlands near Chernobyl are expected to be unsafe for thousands of years.
But scientists also saw a surprising positive impact. Much of the area surrounding the plant was closed to the public because of dangerous radioactive contamination. And because of the lack of people, more wildlife has been returning to the area. Cameras in the area, called the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone, have even spotted rare animals such as lynx and European bison.
In 1986, a nuclear accident had a devastating impact on northern Ukraine’s environment. A reactor at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant exploded, killing many people and animals in Ukraine. Contaminated farmlands near Chernobyl are expected to be unsafe for thousands of years.
But scientists also saw a surprising positive impact. Much of the area surrounding the plant was closed to the public because of dangerous radioactive contamination. And because of the lack of people, more wildlife has been returning to the area. Cameras in the area, called the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone, have even spotted rare animals such as lynx and European bison.
GOVERNMENT AND ECONOMY
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The sunflower is Ukraine's national flower—the country is the world’s largest producer of sunflower seeds.
Ukraine is a semi-presidential republic. The public elects a president for a five-year term, who in turn nominates a prime minister. The nominee is then approved by the country’s 450-member parliament, called the Verkhovna Rada.
Ukraine’s current constitution, which was adopted in 1996, established executive, legislative, and judicial branches. The prime minister oversees the creation and execution of laws through the legislative and judicial branches. The president represents Ukraine at ceremonies around the world and conducts negotiations and international treaties.
Agriculture products are some of the country's main exports, or goods sold to other countries. Ukraine is one of the largest grain exporters in the world and the world’s largest producer of sunflower seeds. (The sunflower is the country’s national flower.)
Ukraine’s current constitution, which was adopted in 1996, established executive, legislative, and judicial branches. The prime minister oversees the creation and execution of laws through the legislative and judicial branches. The president represents Ukraine at ceremonies around the world and conducts negotiations and international treaties.
Agriculture products are some of the country's main exports, or goods sold to other countries. Ukraine is one of the largest grain exporters in the world and the world’s largest producer of sunflower seeds. (The sunflower is the country’s national flower.)
HISTORY
EARLY HISTORY
Humans have settled in Ukraine since prehistoric times—archaeologists believe that humans were using stone tools there some 30,000 years ago. Around the 8th century B.C., long-term settlers began to arrive; these included Cimmerians, Scythians, and Sarmatians, tribes of people from what’s now the country of Iran.
Around the 6th century B.C., ancient Greeks and Romans began to colonize the coast of the Black Sea, trading wine, iron, silver, and gold. Around the same time, tribes of people called Slavs were settling throughout the country. By the 11th century, Slavs had joined Viking invaders called Varangians to form the powerful kingdom of Kyivan Rus, the largest empire in Europe at the time.
In the 13th century, Mongols from central Asia attacked the kingdom and ended the Kyivan Rus reign. In the 1300s, Lithuania took control of most of Ukraine.
RUSSIA TAKES OVER
Polish invaders arrived in Ukraine in the late 1500s. The Poles forced most Ukrainians to be serfs, or to work as farmers on land they didn’t own. Some serfs rebelled and formed a military force called the Cossacks. In 1648, the Cossacks asked for Russia’s help to defeat the Poles, and the Cossacks won independence. But by the late 1700s, Russia had gained control of almost all of Ukraine.
In the late 19th century and the early 20th century, many Ukrainians tried to keep their culture and traditions alive. But Russia pushed back and banned the Ukrainian language in print and in public. By 1922, Ukraine was part of the newly formed Soviet Union. (The Soviet Union was the largest country to have ever existed and included what are now the separate countries of Russia, Lithuania, and Belarus, among others.)
In the 1930s, Soviets took over Ukrainian farms, leading to the death of millions of Ukrainians from starvation. During World War II in the 1940s, Ukraine was invaded by Germany. German forces enslaved millions of Ukrainians and murdered some hundreds of thousands of Ukrainian Jews. In 1944, Germans were driven out of Ukraine by the Soviets.
UKRAINIAN INDEPENDENCE
After the Soviet Union dissolved in 1991, Ukraine declared its independence and elected the country’s first president, Leonid Kravchuk. The country did well at first. It established new currency—the hryvnia (like the U.S. dollar)—and adopted the 1996 constitution under its second president, Leonid Kuchma. But in the early 2000s, Kuchma was accused of rigging elections, meaning that he and others in his party might have cheated to win.
POLITICAL UNREST
In 2004, Viktor Yanukovych was elected president. But he also was suspected of cheating, and many Ukrainians who supported the losing candidate, Viktor Yuschencko, protested the results. When Yuschencko mysteriously became ill, supporters thought pro-Yanukovych forces had poisoned him so they started a protest called the Orange Revolution. Yuschencko was finally put in power.
In 2010, Yanukovych ran for president again and this time was elected. He began to establish closer ties with Russia, something not all Ukrainians liked. Some people in the Russian-speaking eastern part of the country agreed with this move, but much of the rest of the country didn’t want to get involved with the Russian government. Violent protests broke out all over the country, with many calling for Yanukovych to step down.
Yanukovych was removed from office in 2014, and Petro Poroshenko was elected to replace him. Around the same time, Russian troops invaded the Crimean Peninsula, an area of land in southern Ukraine bordered by the Black Sea. Russia’s president, Vladimir Putin, said that the people of Crimea had voted for independence from Ukraine.
Many Ukrainians and leaders from several other countries didn't like Putin’s actions and thought the "vote" wasn't real. But in March 2014, Putin signed a treaty with some Crimean leaders that said that Crimea was part of Russia. Ukrainian officials announced that they would not recognize the agreement and still considered Crimea part of Ukraine, not Russia.
Russian forces remained in Crimea to keep Ukraine from taking it back. Later in 2014, fights along the eastern border broke out between Ukrainians and Russian-backed rebels who wanted all of Ukraine to become part of Russia.
In 2019, comedian and actor Volodymyr Zelensky was elected president of Ukraine. Zelensky ran on a platform of uniting the country and ending border battles in the east with Russia. To help with that, the United States planned to give Ukraine millions of dollars in military aid to help fight the Russian occupations.
In July 2019, U.S. president Donald Trump was accused of withholding those funds unless Zelensky investigated Trump’s political rival, Joe Biden. He refused, and Trump was eventually impeached, or formally accused of misconduct in office, by the U.S. House of Representatives over these claims. (Ukraine received the aid later in the year.)
WAR WITH RUSSIA
In February 2022, Putin announced an invasion on the country and sent troops to take over major cities, including the capital, Kyiv. Ukrainian citizens have been fighting back against the attacks, and Zelensky has vowed to remain in the country and fight until Ukraine regains its freedom.
Many world leaders strongly condemned Putin’s actions, and some punished Russia by stopping trade with the country or putting travel bans in place. The hope is that these punishments—called sanctions—will hurt Putin and Russia enough to stop the fighting before the war spreads into other European nations.
Humans have settled in Ukraine since prehistoric times—archaeologists believe that humans were using stone tools there some 30,000 years ago. Around the 8th century B.C., long-term settlers began to arrive; these included Cimmerians, Scythians, and Sarmatians, tribes of people from what’s now the country of Iran.
Around the 6th century B.C., ancient Greeks and Romans began to colonize the coast of the Black Sea, trading wine, iron, silver, and gold. Around the same time, tribes of people called Slavs were settling throughout the country. By the 11th century, Slavs had joined Viking invaders called Varangians to form the powerful kingdom of Kyivan Rus, the largest empire in Europe at the time.
In the 13th century, Mongols from central Asia attacked the kingdom and ended the Kyivan Rus reign. In the 1300s, Lithuania took control of most of Ukraine.
RUSSIA TAKES OVER
Polish invaders arrived in Ukraine in the late 1500s. The Poles forced most Ukrainians to be serfs, or to work as farmers on land they didn’t own. Some serfs rebelled and formed a military force called the Cossacks. In 1648, the Cossacks asked for Russia’s help to defeat the Poles, and the Cossacks won independence. But by the late 1700s, Russia had gained control of almost all of Ukraine.
In the late 19th century and the early 20th century, many Ukrainians tried to keep their culture and traditions alive. But Russia pushed back and banned the Ukrainian language in print and in public. By 1922, Ukraine was part of the newly formed Soviet Union. (The Soviet Union was the largest country to have ever existed and included what are now the separate countries of Russia, Lithuania, and Belarus, among others.)
In the 1930s, Soviets took over Ukrainian farms, leading to the death of millions of Ukrainians from starvation. During World War II in the 1940s, Ukraine was invaded by Germany. German forces enslaved millions of Ukrainians and murdered some hundreds of thousands of Ukrainian Jews. In 1944, Germans were driven out of Ukraine by the Soviets.
UKRAINIAN INDEPENDENCE
After the Soviet Union dissolved in 1991, Ukraine declared its independence and elected the country’s first president, Leonid Kravchuk. The country did well at first. It established new currency—the hryvnia (like the U.S. dollar)—and adopted the 1996 constitution under its second president, Leonid Kuchma. But in the early 2000s, Kuchma was accused of rigging elections, meaning that he and others in his party might have cheated to win.
POLITICAL UNREST
In 2004, Viktor Yanukovych was elected president. But he also was suspected of cheating, and many Ukrainians who supported the losing candidate, Viktor Yuschencko, protested the results. When Yuschencko mysteriously became ill, supporters thought pro-Yanukovych forces had poisoned him so they started a protest called the Orange Revolution. Yuschencko was finally put in power.
In 2010, Yanukovych ran for president again and this time was elected. He began to establish closer ties with Russia, something not all Ukrainians liked. Some people in the Russian-speaking eastern part of the country agreed with this move, but much of the rest of the country didn’t want to get involved with the Russian government. Violent protests broke out all over the country, with many calling for Yanukovych to step down.
Yanukovych was removed from office in 2014, and Petro Poroshenko was elected to replace him. Around the same time, Russian troops invaded the Crimean Peninsula, an area of land in southern Ukraine bordered by the Black Sea. Russia’s president, Vladimir Putin, said that the people of Crimea had voted for independence from Ukraine.
Many Ukrainians and leaders from several other countries didn't like Putin’s actions and thought the "vote" wasn't real. But in March 2014, Putin signed a treaty with some Crimean leaders that said that Crimea was part of Russia. Ukrainian officials announced that they would not recognize the agreement and still considered Crimea part of Ukraine, not Russia.
Russian forces remained in Crimea to keep Ukraine from taking it back. Later in 2014, fights along the eastern border broke out between Ukrainians and Russian-backed rebels who wanted all of Ukraine to become part of Russia.
In 2019, comedian and actor Volodymyr Zelensky was elected president of Ukraine. Zelensky ran on a platform of uniting the country and ending border battles in the east with Russia. To help with that, the United States planned to give Ukraine millions of dollars in military aid to help fight the Russian occupations.
In July 2019, U.S. president Donald Trump was accused of withholding those funds unless Zelensky investigated Trump’s political rival, Joe Biden. He refused, and Trump was eventually impeached, or formally accused of misconduct in office, by the U.S. House of Representatives over these claims. (Ukraine received the aid later in the year.)
WAR WITH RUSSIA
In February 2022, Putin announced an invasion on the country and sent troops to take over major cities, including the capital, Kyiv. Ukrainian citizens have been fighting back against the attacks, and Zelensky has vowed to remain in the country and fight until Ukraine regains its freedom.
Many world leaders strongly condemned Putin’s actions, and some punished Russia by stopping trade with the country or putting travel bans in place. The hope is that these punishments—called sanctions—will hurt Putin and Russia enough to stop the fighting before the war spreads into other European nations.