Ukraine

I

Introduction

Ukraine, republic in eastern Europe, bordered on the north by Belarus and Russia; on the east by Russia; on the south by the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov; on the south-west by Romania and Moldova; and on the west by Hungary, Slovakia, and Poland. Formerly the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic (SSR) of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR), Ukraine is an associate member of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), which in December 1991 succeeded the USSR. It has withheld its agreement on payments and customs union, choosing “observer” status at the CIS Intergovernmental Assembly.

With a total area of about 603,700 sq km (233,100 sq mi), Ukraine is the second-largest country in Europe after Russia. Ukraine includes the Crimean Republic, which was elevated from an oblast to a constituent republic in 1991. Kiev is the capital and largest city.

II

Land and Resources

Almost the entire country of Ukraine is a vast flat plain, with elevations generally below 300 m (984 ft). The Carpathian Mountains intrude at the extreme west, and on the southern coast of the Crimean Peninsula are the Crimean Mountains. The highest point in Ukraine is Mount Hoverla in the Carpathians, with an elevation of 2,061 m (6,762 ft).

A

Rivers and Lakes

Most major rivers flow south to the Black Sea; they include the River Dnepr in central Ukraine, the Southern Bug and Dnestr rivers in the west, the River Donets in the east, and the Danube in the far south. The Western Bug, however, flows northward through the western part of the country and joins the Wisła, which empties into the Baltic Sea.

B

Climate

The climate of Ukraine is temperate continental, with a subtropical Mediterranean climate prevalent on the southern portions of the Crimean Peninsula. The average monthly temperature in winter ranges from -8° to 2° C (17.6° to 35.6° F), while summer temperatures average 17° to 25° C (62.6° to 77° F). The Black Sea coast is subject to freezing, and no Ukrainian port is permanently ice-free. Precipitation generally decreases from north to south; it is greatest in the Carpathians, where it exceeds more than 1,500 mm (58.5 in) per year, and least in the coastal lowlands of the Black Sea, where it averages less than 300 mm (11.7 in) per year.