Ukraine

republicIndependence 1 December 1991 (from Soviet Union)

Ukraine as the 1995 edition of the CIA World Factbook published it: 86 fields, one of 34 editions from 1992 to 2025.

field in that editiontext changed from the edition beforenot in that editionthe open editionEach field below ends in its editions, 1990 to 2025. Point at a year above to follow it down.

CapitalKiev (Kyyiv)
Area603,700 sq km
LocationEastern Europe, bordering the Black Sea, between Poland and
1995

Every edition of Ukraine

Populationas each edition published it
51.87 million July 1995 est. · 51.94m in 1992
Population growth% a year
0.04% 1995 est. · 0.06% in 1993
Median ageyears
Not in this edition 38 yrs in 2003
Life expectancyyears at birth
70.11 years 1995 est. · 69.87 yrs in 1993
Fertility ratechildren per woman
1.81 children per woman 1995 est. · 2 in 1992
Infant mortalitydeaths per 1,000 live births
20.5 deaths per 1,000 live births 1995 est. · 22 in 1992
GDP per capitaeach edition's own dollars
$3,650 1994 est. · $3,960 in 1994
GDP real growth% a year
-19% 1994 est. · -13% in 1993

Geography

Eastern Europe, bordering the Black Sea, between Poland and | Russia

14 fields

Land useshare of 603,700 sq km

arable land 56%permanent crops 2%meadows and pastures 12%forest and woodland 0%other 30%irrigated 26,000 sq km (1990)
Area
603,700sq km
land area: 603,700 sq kmcomparative area: slightly smaller than Texas
Coastline
2,782km
continental shelf: 200-m or to the depth of exploitationexclusive economic zone: undefinedterritorial sea: 12 nm
Land boundaries
4,558km
total · Belarus 891 km, Hungary 103 km, Moldova 939 km, Poland 428 km, Romania (southwest) 169 km, Romania (west) 362 km, Russia 1,576 km, Slovakia 90 km

Location

Eastern Europe, bordering the Black Sea, between Poland and Russia

Map references

Commonwealth of Independent States - European States

International disputes

  • certain territory of Moldova and Ukraine - including Bessarabia and Northern Bukovina - are considered by Bucharest as historically a part of Romania;
  • this territory was incorporated into the former Soviet Union following the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact in 1940;
  • potential dispute with Russia over Crimea;
  • has made no territorial claim in Antarctica (but has reserved the right to do so) and does not recognize the claims of any other nation

Climate

  • 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

Terrain

most of Ukraine consists of fertile plains (steppes) and plateaux, mountains being found only in the west (the Carpathians), and in the Crimean Peninsula in the extreme south

Natural resources

iron ore, coal, manganese, natural gas, oil, salt, sulphur, graphite, titanium, magnesium, kaolin, nickel, mercury, timber

Environment

current issues:
  • inadequate supplies of potable water;
  • air and water pollution;
  • deforestation;
  • radiation contamination in the northeast from 1986 accident at Chornobyl' Nuclear Power Plant
natural hazards:
NA
international agreements:
  • party to - Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Antarctic Treaty, Environmental Modification, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution;
  • signed, but not ratified - Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Law of the Sea

Note

strategic position at the crossroads between Europe and Asia; second largest country in Europe

People

15 fields
Population
51,867,828
(July 1995 est.)growth rate: 0.04% (1995 est.)

Per 1,000 population(1995 est.)

Birth
12.31Death
12.67Net migration
0.71

Male · female(1995 est.)

TotalMale · femaleLife expectancy years70.11
65.59 · 74.87
TotalMale · femaleLiteracy98%
100% · 97%
MaleFemaleLiteracy age 15 and over can read and write (1989)

Ethnic divisions

Ukrainian 73%Russian 22%Jewish 1%other 4%
Labor force
23.55million
(January 1994)by occupation: industry and construction 33%, agriculture and forestry 21%, health, education, and culture 16%, trade and distribution 7%, transport and communication 7%, other 16% (1992)

Age structure

0-14 years:
21% (female 5,217,850; male 5,407,450)
15-64 years:
65% (female 17,563,924; male 16,334,299)
65 years and over:
14% (female 4,976,893; male 2,367,412) (July 1995 est.)

Infant mortality rate

20.5 deaths/1,000 live births (1995 est.)

Total fertility rate

1.81 children born/woman (1995 est.)

Nationality

noun:
Ukrainian(s)
adjective:
Ukrainian

Religions

Ukrainian Orthodox - Moscow Patriarchate, Ukrainian Orthodox - Kiev Patriarchate, Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox, Ukrainian Catholic (Uniate), Protestant, Jewish

Languages

Ukrainian, Russian, Romanian, Polish, Hungarian

Government

Republic; President Leonid D. KUCHMA (since 19 July 1994); Acting Prime Minister Yeuben MARCHUK (since 3 March 1995)

25 fields

Presidential electionpercent of vote

52.15%
Leonid KUCHMA 52.15%Leonid KRAVCHUK 45.06%

Legislature, 450 seatsseats by party

Communists 91Rukh 22Agrarians 18Socialists 15Republicans 11Congress of Ukrainian Nationalists 5Labor 5Party of Democratic Revival 4Democrats 2Social Democrats 2Civil Congress 2Conservative Republicans 1Party of Economic Revival of Crimea 1Christian Democrats 1independents 225

Names

conventional long form:
none
conventional short form:
Ukraine
local long form:
none
local short form:
Ukrayina
former:
Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic

Type

republic

Capital

Kiev (Kyyiv)

Administrative divisions

24 oblasti (singular - oblast'), 1 autonomous republic* (avtomnaya respublika), and 2 municipalites (mista, singular - misto) with oblast status**; Cherkas'ka (Cherkasy), Chernihivs'ka (Chernihiv), Chernivets'ka (Chernivtsi), Dnipropetrovs'ka (Dnipropetrovs'k), Donets'ka (Donets'k), Ivano-Frankivs'ka (Ivano-Frankivs'k), Kharkivs'ka (Kharkiv), Khersons'ka (Kherson), Khmel'nyts'ka (Khmel'nyts'kyy), Kirovohrads'ka (Kirovohrad), Kyyiv**, Kyyivs'ka (Kiev), Luhans'ka (Luhans'k), L'vivs'ka (L'viv), Mykolayivs'ka (Mykolayiv), Odes'ka (Odesa), Poltavs'ka (Poltava), Respublika Krym* (Simferopol'), Rivnens'ka (Rivne), Sevastopol'**, Sums'ka (Sevastopol'), Ternopil's'ka (Ternopil'), Vinnyts'ka (Vinnytsya), Volyns'ka (Luts'k), Zakarpats'ka (Uzhhorod), Zaporiz'ka (Zaporizhzhya), Zhytomyrs'ka (Zhytomyr); note: names in parentheses are administrative centers when name differs from oblast' name

Independence

1 December 1991 (from Soviet Union)

National holiday

Independence Day, 24 August (1991)

Constitution

using 1978 pre-independence constitution; new constitution currently being drafted

Suffrage

18 years of age; universal

Executive branch

chief of state:
  • President Leonid D. KUCHMA (since 19 July 1994);
  • election last held 26 June and 10 July 1994 (next to be held NA 1999);
  • results - Leonid KUCHMA 52.15%, Leonid KRAVCHUK 45.06%
head of government:
  • Acting Prime Minister Yeuben MARCHUK (since 3 March 1995);
  • First Deputy Prime Ministers Yevhen MARCHUK and Viktor PYNZENYK (since 31 October 1994) and six deputy prime ministers
cabinet:
Council of Ministers; appointed by the president and approved by the Supreme Council

National Security Council

  • originally created in 1992, but signficantly revamped and strengthened under President KUCHMA;
  • members include the president, prime minister, Ministers of Finance, Environment, Justice, Internal Affairs, Foreign Economic Relations, Economic and Foreign Affairs;
  • the NSC staff is tasked with developing national security policy on domestic and international matters and advising the president

Presidential Administration

helps draft presidential edicts and provides policy support to the president

Council of Regions

advisory body created by President KUCHMA in September 1994; includes the Chairmen of Oblast and Kiev and Sevastopol City Supreme Councils

Supreme Council

  • elections last held 27 March 1994 with repeat elections continuing through December 1998 to fill empty seats (next to be held NA);
  • results - percent of vote by party NA;
  • seats - (450 total) Communists 91, Rukh 22, Agrarians 18, Socialists 15, Republicans 11, Congress of Ukrainian Nationalists 5, Labor 5, Party of Democratic Revival 4, Democrats 2, Social Democrats 2, Civil Congress 2, Conservative Republicans 1, Party of Economic Revival of Crimea 1, Christian Democrats 1, independents 225;
  • note - 405 deputies have been elected;
  • run-off elections for the remaining 45 seats to be held by December 1998

Judicial branch

joint commission formed in April 1995 to define a program of judicial reform by year-end

Political parties and leaders

  • Green Party of Ukraine, Vitaliy KONONOV, leader;
  • Liberal Party of Ukraine;
  • Liberal Democratic Party of Ukraine, Volodymyr KLYMCHUK, chairman;
  • Democratic Party of Ukraine, Volodymyr Oleksandrovych YAVORIVSKIY, chairman;
  • People's Party of Ukraine, Leopol'd TABURYANSKYY, chairman;
  • Peasants' Party of Ukraine, Serhiy DOVHRAN', chairman;
  • Party of Democratic Rebirth (Revival) of Ukraine, Volodymyr FILENKO, chairman;
  • Social Democratic Party of Ukraine, Yuriy VUZDUHAN, chairman;
  • Socialist Party of Ukraine, Oleksandr MOROZ, chairman;
  • Ukrainian Christian Democratic Party, Vitaliy ZHURAVSKYY, chairman;
  • Ukrainian Conservative Republican Party, Stepan KHMARA, chairman;
  • Ukrainian Labor Party, Valentyn LANDYK, chairman;
  • Ukrainian Party of Justice, Mykhaylo HRECHKO, chairman;
  • Ukrainian Peasants' Democratic Party, Serhiy PLACHINDA, chairman;
  • Ukrainian Republican Party, Mykhaylo HORYN', chairman;
  • Ukrainian National Conservative Party, Viktor RADIONOV, chairman;
  • Ukrainian People's Movement for Restructuring (Rukh), Vyacheslav CHORNOVIL, chairman;
  • Ukrainian Communist Party, Petr SYMONENKO;
  • Agrarian Party;
  • Congress of Ukrainian Nationalists, S. STESTKO;
  • Civil Congress, O. BAZYLUK;
  • Party of Economic Revival of Crimea;
  • Democratic Party Of Ukraine, Serhiy DOVMAN', chairman

Other political or pressure groups

New Ukraine (Nova Ukrayina); Congress of National Democratic Forces

Member of

BSEC, CCC, CE (guest), CEI (associate members), CIS, EBRD, ECE, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INMARSAT, INTELSAT (nonsignatory user), INTERPOL, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, NACC, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNPROFOR, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO

Diplomatic representation in US

chief of mission:
Ambassador Yuriy SHCHERBAK
chancery:
3350 M Street NW, Washington, DC 20007
telephone:
[1] (202) 333-0606

FAX

[1] (202) 333-0817; consulate(s) general: Chicago and New York

US diplomatic representation

chief of mission:
Ambassador William Green MILLER
embassy:
10 Yuria Kotsyubinskovo, 252053 Kiev 53
mailing address:
use embassy street address
telephone:
[7] (044) 244-73-49, 244-37-45

FAX

[7] (044) 244-73-50

Flag

two equal horizontal bands of azure (top) and golden yellow represent grainfields under a blue sky

Economy

After Russia, the Ukrainian republic was far and away the | most important economic component of the former Soviet Union, | producing more than three times the output of the next-ranking | republic.

19 fields
GDP per capita, PPP
$3,650
(1994 est.)
Real growth rate
-19%
(1994 est.)industrial production growth: growth rate -28% (1994 est.); accounts for 50% of GDP
Inflation, consumer prices
14%per month
(1994)
Unemployment rate
0.4%officially registered
large number of unregistered or underemployed workers

Installed generating capacity, 54,380,000 kW

Electricity production
182 billionElectricity consumption per capita
3,200 (1994)

Overview

After Russia, the Ukrainian republic was far and away the most important economic component of the former Soviet Union, producing more than three times the output of the next-ranking republic. Its fertile black soil generated more than one-fourth of Soviet agricultural output, and its farms provided substantial quantities of meat, milk, grain, and vegetables to other republics.

Likewise, its diversified heavy industry supplied equipment and raw materials to industrial and mining sites in other regions of the former USSR. In early 1992, the Ukrainian government liberalized most prices and erected a legal framework for privatization, but widespread resistance to reform within the government and the legislature soon stalled reform efforts and led to some backtracking.

Loose monetary and fiscal policies pushed inflation to hyperinflationary levels in late 1993. Greater monetary and fiscal restraint lowered inflation in 1994, but also contributed to an accelerated decline in industrial output. Since his election in July 1994, President KUCHMA has developed - and parliament has approved - a comprehensive economic reform program, maintained financial discipline, and reduced state controls over prices, the exchange rate, and foreign trade.

Implementation of KUCHMA's economic agenda will encounter considerable resistance from parliament, entrenched bureaucrats, and industrial interests and will contribute to further declines in output and rising unemployment which will sorely test the government's ability to stay the course on reform in 1995.

National product

GDP - purchasing power parity - $189.2 billion (1994 estimate as extrapolated from World Bank estimate for 1992)

Budget

revenues:
$NA
expenditures:
$NA, including capital expenditures of $NA

Exports

$11.8 billion (1994)

commodities:
coal, electric power, ferrous and nonferrous metals, chemicals, machinery and transport equipment, grain, meat
partners:
FSU countries, China, Italy, Switzerland

Imports

$14.2 billion (1994)

commodities:
energy, machinery and parts, transportation equipment, chemicals, textiles
partners:
FSU countries, Germany, Poland, Czech Republic

External debt

$7.5 billion (yearend 1994)

Industries

coal, electric power, ferrous and nonferrous metals, machinery and transport equipment, chemicals, food-processing (especially sugar)

Agriculture

accounts for about 25% of GDP; grain, vegetables, meat, milk, sugar beets

Illicit drugs

  • illicit cultivator of cannabis and opium poppy;
  • mostly for CIS consumption;
  • limited government eradication program;
  • used as transshipment point for illicit drugs to Western Europe

Economic aid

$550 million economic aid and $350 million to help disassemble the atomic weapons from the US in 1994

Currency

  • Ukraine withdrew the Russian ruble from circulation on 12 November 1992 and declared the karbovanets (plural karbovantsi) sole legal tender in Ukrainian markets;
  • Ukrainian officials claim this is an interim move toward introducing a new currency - the hryvnya - possibly in mid-1995

Exchange rates

karbovantsi per 1$US - 107,900 (end December 1994), 130,000 (April 1994)

Fiscal year

calendar year

Transportation

7 fields

Airports by runway lengthpaved left, unpaved right · 706 in all

14
over 3,047 m
7
55
2,438 to 3,047 m
7
34
1,524 to 2,437 m
3
914 to 1,523 m
37
57
under 914 m
476
1,524 to 2,438 m
16
PavedUnpaved

Networkskm

Highways
273,700Railroads
23,350Inland waterways
1,672
Highways: paved and graveled: 236,400 km · unpaved: earth 37,300 km · Railroads: broad gauge: 23,350 km 1.524-m gauge (8,600 km electrified) · Inland waterways: (Pryp''yat' and Dnipro Rivers)

Railroads

total:
23,350 km
broad gauge:
23,350 km 1.524-m gauge (8,600 km electrified)

Highways

total:
273,700 km
paved and graveled:
236,400 km
unpaved:
earth 37,300 km

Inland waterways

1,672 km perennially navigable (Pryp''yat' and Dnipro Rivers)

Pipelines

crude oil 2,010 km; petroleum products 1,920 km; natural gas 7,800 km (1992)

Ports

Berdyans'k, Illichivs'k, Izmayil, Kerch, Kherson, Kiev (Kyyiv), Mariupol', Mykolayiv, Odesa, Pivdenne, Reni

Merchant marine

total:
379 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 3,799,253 GRT/5,071,175 DWT
ships by type:
barge carrier 7, bulk 55, cargo 221, chemical tanker 2, container 20, multifunction large-load carrier 1, oil tanker 10, passenger 12, passenger-cargo 5, railcar carrier 2, refrigerated cargo 5, roll-on/roll-off cargo 32, short-sea passenger 7

Communications

3 fields

Telephone system

  • 7,886,000 telephone circuits;
  • about 151.4 telephone circuits/1,000 persons (1991);
  • the telephone system is inadequate both for business and for personal use;
  • 3.56 million applications for telephones had not been satisfied as of January 1991;
  • electronic mail services have been established in Kiev, Odesa, and Luhans'k by Sprint
local:
an NMT-450 analog cellular telephone network operates in Kiev (Kyyiv) and allows direct dialing of international calls through Kiev's EWSD digital exchange
intercity:
NA
international:
  • calls to other CIS countries are carried by land line or microwave;
  • other international calls to 167 countries are carried by satellite or by the 150 leased lines through the Moscow gateway switch;
  • INTELSAT, INMARSAT, and Intersputnik earth stations

Radio

broadcast stations:
AM NA, FM NA, shortwave NA
radios:
15 million

Television

broadcast stations:
NA
televisions:
20 million

Defense Forces

Army, Navy, Air and Air Defense Forces, Republic Security | Forces (internal and border troops), National Guard

3 fields

Branches

Army, Navy, Air and Air Defense Forces, Republic Security Forces (internal and border troops), National Guard

Manpower availability

  • males age 15-49 12,324,832;
  • males fit for military service 9,667,642;
  • males reach military age (18) annually 359,546 (1995 est.)

Defense expenditures

  • 544.3 billion karbovantsi, less than 4% of GDP (forecast for 1993);
  • note - conversion of defense expenditures into US dollars using the current exchange rate could produce misleading results UNITED ARAB EMIRATES

Central Intelligence Agency. “Ukraine.” The World Factbook 1995. Archived by The Factbook, thefactbook.org/ukraine/1995.

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