Sign in or 
Share this
Ukraine
Ukraine is located in the south-eastern part of Central Europe. It borders on Russia, Byelorussia, Moldova, Slovakia, Roumania, Hungary and Poland on land and Russia, Georgia, Bulgaria, Roumania and Turkey on sea. The territory of Ukraine is mostly a level, treeless plain, calls "steppe". There're the Crimean Mountains in the Crimean peninsula and the Carpathians in the west, but they're not very high. Mixed forests of pine and fir-trees, beeches, limes, oaks and elms cover the mountains, but the thickest woods can still be found in the northern part of the republic, in Volyn. Kiev and Cherkassy lie in the midst of Ukrainian southernmost pine forest. Dnieper is the main Ukrainian river. It's one of the longest European rivers and one of the republic's main source of hydroelectric power. The Dnieper and its tributary the Ross had been the cradle of the Ukrainian and Russian people in time immemorial.
The climate of the country's moderate. Winter is rather mild, with no severe frosts, with regular snowfalls everywhere except the south. The average winter temperature varies -20 Centigrade in the north to -3-5 in the south. The rivers and lakes freeze in winter. Summer is hot and dry, with occasional showers & thunderstorms. The fertile black soil's well watered in spring & autumn & gets plenty of sunshine in summer.
Ukraine's traditionally an agricultural area. It grows wheat, maize, red and green vegetables, buckwheat and other corn, all kinds of fruit, berries and melons.
Ukraine's one of the world's main centers of sugar production.
This country is rich in natural resources, such as iron ore, gas, mineral salts, coal, color metal, oil, clay and potential water power. It has developed a varied industry, concentrated mostly in & around big cities, such as Kiev, Odessa, Kharkov, Zaporozhye, Dnepropetrovsk, Dnyeprodzerzhinsk, Lviv, Nickolayev and other. It produces TV and radioset, lorries and buses, motorcars and locomotives, planes and ships, computer and electronic equipment, precision instruments and agricultural machines, chemicals and textiles and various consumer goods. Odessa, Kherson, Sebastopol, Nickolayev and Kerch are main ukrainian ports.
 |
Total area: 233,089 sq mi (603,700 sq km) Population (2006 est.): 46,710,816 (growth rate: –0.6%); birth rate: 8.8/1000; infant mortality rate: 9.9/1000; life expectancy: 70.0; density per sq mi: 200 Capital (2003): Kyiv (Kiev), 3,296,100 (metro. area), 2,588,400 (city proper) Other large cities: Kharkiv, 1,435,200; Odessa, 1,022,300; Donetske, 984,900; Lvov, 700,100 Monetary unit: Hryvna Languages: Ukrainian 67%, Russian 24%, Romanian, Polish, Hungarian Ethnicity/race: Ukrainian 77.8%, Russian 17.3%, Belorussian 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) Religions: Ukrainian Orthodox (Kiev Patriarchate 19%, Moscow Patriarchate 9%, no particular division 16%), Ukrainian Greek Catholic 6%, Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox 2%, Protestant, Jewish, none 38% (2004) Literacy rate: 100% (2003 est.) Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2005 est.): $319.4 billion; per capita $6,800. Real growth rate: 2.4%. Inflation: 10.3%. Unemployment: 2.9% officially registered; large number of unregistered or underemployed workers; International Labor Organization est.: 9%–10%. Arable land: 54%. Agriculture: grain, sugar beets, sunflower seeds, vegetables; beef, milk. Labor force: 22.67 million; industry 32%, agriculture 24%, services 44% (1996). Industries: coal, electric power, ferrous and nonferrous metals, machinery and transport equipment, chemicals, food processing (especially sugar). Natural resources: iron ore, coal, manganese, natural gas, oil, salt, sulfur, graphite, titanium, magnesium, kaolin, nickel, mercury, timber, arable land. Exports: $38.22 billion (2005 est.): ferrous and nonferrous metals, fuel and petroleum products, chemicals, machinery and transport equipment, food products. Imports: $37.18 billion (2005 est.): energy, machinery and equipment, chemicals. Major trading partners: Russia, Germany, Turkey, Italy, U.S., Turkmenistan (2004). Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 9.45 million (April 1999); mobile cellular: 236,000 (1998). Radio broadcast stations: AM 134, FM 289, shortwave 4 (1998). Radios: 45.05 million (1997). Television broadcast stations: at least 33 (plus 21 repeater stations that relay broadcasts from Russia) (1997). Televisions: 18.05 million (1997). Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 260 (2001). Internet users: 750,000 (2001). Transportation: Railways: total: 22,473 km (2002). Highways: total: 169,491 km; paved: 163,898 km; unpaved: 5,593 km (2000). Waterways: 4,499 km (1990). Ports and harbors: Berdyans'k, Feodosiya, Illichivs'k, Izmayil, Kerch, Kherson, Kiev (Kyyiv), Kiliya, Mariupol', Mykolayiv, Odesa, Reni, Sevastopol', Yalta, Yuzhnyy. Airports: 790 (2002). International disputes: 1997 boundary treaty with Belarus remains unratified over unresolved financial claims, preventing demarcation and encouraging illegal cross-border activities; land delimitation of boundary with Russia is complete, but maritime regime of the Sea of Azov and Kerch Strait remains unresolved; difficulties in the Transnistria region of Moldova complicate border crossing and customs, facilitating smuggling, arms transfers, and other illegal activities; has not resolved Romanian claims to Ukrainian-administered Zmiyinyy (Snake) Island and Black Sea maritime boundary despite ongoing talks based on 1997 friendship treaty to find a solution in two years.
Category:
Articles
Countries
broom |
Latest page update: made by broom
, Feb 19 2008, 11:49 AM EST
(about this update
About This Update
Edited by broom
2 words added 1 word deleted view changes - complete history) |
|
More Info: links to this page
|
There are no threads for this page.
Be the first to start a new thread.
