Ukraine
Ukraine (
Ukrainian: Україна,
Ukrayina, ) is a
country in
Eastern Europe. It borders
Russia to the northeast,
Belarus to the north,
Poland,
Slovakia and
Hungary to the west,
Romania and
Moldova to the southwest and the
Black Sea to the south. The historic city of
Kiev (
Kyiv) is the republic's capital.
From at least the
ninth century the territory of present-day Ukraine was a centre of
medieval East Slavic civilization that formed the state that became known as
Kievan Rus and for the following several centuries the territory was divided between a number of regional powers. After a
brief period of independence (1917-1921) following the
Russian Revolution of 1917, Ukraine became one of the founding
Soviet Republics in 1922. The
Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic's territory was enlarged westward after the
Second World War and finally in 1954 with the
Crimea transfer. Ukraine became independent again after the
Soviet Union's collapse in 1991.
According to one theory, the
Ukrainian word
Ukrayina stems from the
Old Slavic root
kraj-, meaning "land", "region", "country", but also "edge" or "borderland" (see below). In particular, in Ukrainian
krayina means simply "country". Opinions vary as to the immediate derivation, but the first known mentioning in the
Kiev Chronicle of 1187 probably uses the word in the meaning of ‘region,
principality', which might be etymologized as ‘land cut out for a
Prince' (maybe referring to the general feudal practice of a prince dividing land between his sons). Over time, as the dominant self-identification paradigms were changing, the word's initial meaning ‘the land of the Prince' may have transformed to a wider meaning.
According to another theory,
kraj- in the meaning of ‘
borderland,
frontier' formed the basis for the modern name of the country (cf.
Russian okraina "outskirts"; a semantic parallel to
-mark in
Denmark, cf.
Marches; cf. also
Krajina). The
voivodship of Kiev, which was called
Ukraina from the 16th century on, was on the south-eastern border of the
Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth.
In
English, the country is sometimes referred to with the definite article, as
the Ukraine, as in
the Netherlands,
the Gambia,
the Sudan or
the Congo. However, usage without the article is becoming more frequent, and has become established in journalism and diplomacy since the country's independence (for example, within the style guides of
The Economist,
The Guardian and
The Times). Additionally, the usage of "the Ukraine" in English is sometimes discouraged because of the inference that it regards Ukraine as merely a region rather than an independent nation-state.
Human settlement in the territory of Ukraine has been documented into distant prehistory. The late neolithic
Trypillian culture flourished from ca. 4500
BC to 3000 BC.
Early history of Ukraine (700 BC â€" AD 700)
In antiquity, the southern and eastern parts of modern Ukraine were populated by
Iranian nomads called Scythians. The
Scythian Kingdom existed on this land between 700 BC and 200 BC. In the
third century, the
Goths arrived, calling their country
Oium, and formed the
Chernyakhov culture before moving on and defeating the
Roman empire. In the
7th century the territory of the modern Ukraine was the core of the state of the
Bulgars (often referred to as
Great Bulgaria) who had their capital in the city of
Phanagoria.
The majority of the Bulgar tribes migrated in several directions at the end of the
seventh century and the remains of their state was swept by the
Khazars, a
Turkic semi-
nomadic people from
Central Asia which later adopted
Judaism. The Khazars founded the independent
Khazar kingdom in the southeastern part of today's
Europe, near the
Caspian Sea and the
Caucasus. In addition to western
Kazakhstan, the Khazar kingdom also included territory in what is now eastern Ukraine,
Azerbaijan, southern
Russia, and
Crimea.
Golden Age of Kiev (AD 800 - 1100)
|
Map of the Kievan Rus', 11th century. During the Golden Age of Kiev the lands of Rus' covered much of present day Ukraine, as well as Russia and Belarus |
During the
tenth and
eleventh centuries the territory of Ukraine became the centre of a powerful and prestigious state in
Europe,
Kievan Rus, laying the foundation for the national identity of Ukrainians, as well as other
East Slavic nations, through subsequent centuries. Its capital was
Kiev, the capital of modern Ukraine, wrestled from Khazars by
Askold and Dir in about 860. According to the
Primary Chronicle the Kievan Rus' elite initially consisted of
Varangians from
Scandinavia. The Varangians later became assimilated into the local Slavic population and gave the Rus' its first powerful dynasty, the
Rurik Dynasty.
Kievian Rus' was comprised from
several principalities, ruled by the interrelated
Rurikid Princes. The seat of Kiev, the most prestigious and influential of all principalities, became a subject of many rivalries between Rurikids as the most valuable prize in their quest for power, sometimes through intrigue but often through bloody conflicts. The Golden Age of Kievan Rus' falls on the years of Kiev being ruled by
Vladimir the Great (
Volodymyr) (
980â€"
1015) who
turned Rus' towards the Byzantine Christianity and his son
Yaroslav the Wise (
1019â€"
1054) during whose lengthy reign, Kievan Rus' reached a zenith of its cultural flowering and military power that was followed by the state's increasing fragmentation as the relative importance of regions rose again. After the one last resurgence under the rule of
Vladimir Monomakh 1113â€"
1125 and his son
Mstislav (
1125â€"
1132) the Kievan Rus' finally disintegrated into the separate principalities following Mstislav's death. The thirteenth century
Mongol invasion dealt Rus' a final blow from which it never recovered.
Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth (1300 - 1600)
On the Ukrainian territory, the state of Kievan Rus' was succeeded by the principalities of
Halych and
Volodymyr-Volynskyi, which were merged into the state of
Halych-Volynia. In the mid 14th century it was subjugated by
Casimir IV of Poland while the
heartland of Rus', including Kiev, fell under the
Gedimid Grand Duchy of Lithuania. Following the
1386 marriage of Lithuania's
Grand Duke Jagiello to Poland's
Queen Jadwiga, most of the Ukrainian territory was controlled by the increasingly
Ruthenized Lithuanian rulers as part of the
Grand Duchy of Lithuania (the term Ruthenia and Ruthenians as the Latinized versions of "Rus'", became widely applied to the land and its people, respectively).
By the
1569 Union of Lublin that formed the
Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, a significant part of Ukrainian territory was moved from largely Ruthenized Lithuanian rule to the Polish administration, as it was transferred to the
Polish Crown. Under the cultural pressure of
polonization much of the Ruthenian upper class converted to
Catholicism (such transitions were beneficial for achieving political influence within the state), for example,
King Michael of Poland, who reigned from
1669 to
1673, was of the Ruthenian Vishnevetsky
Wiśniowiecki family. At the same time the common people, especially the peasants retained their old ways of especially, the allegiance to their historic
Eastern Orthodox Church, which led to the increasing social tensions, visible in such events as the
1596 Union of Brest, created by
Sigismund III Vasa, who attempted to bring the Orthodox population under the Catholicism through creation of the
Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church. This controversial move failed to achieve its goals. Resisted even by some Ruthenian
magnates, otherwise loyal to the Polish kings (
Ostrogskis being the most notable example), the new "intermediate" religion was unnecessary for the most of the upper class, much of whom increasingly turned directly towards
Catholicism with each subsequent generation. Thus, the Ukrainian commoners, deprived of their native protectors among Ruthenian nobility, turned for protection to the militant
Cossacks who remained fiercely Orthodox at all times.
The Rise of the Cossacks (1600 - 1800)
In the mid of the
17th century, a Cossack quasi-state, the
Zaporozhian Sich, was established by the Dnieper cossacks and the Ruthenian peasants fleeing Polish
serfdom. Poland had little real control of this land in what is now central Ukraine, which became an autonomous military state, at times allied with the Commonwealth in the military campaigns. However, the en
serfment of peasantry by the
Polish nobility, overall emphasis of the Commonwealth's
agricultural economy on the fierce exploitation of the unfree workforce, and, perhaps most importantly, the suppression of the Orthodox church pushed the allegiances of Cossacks away from Poland. Their aspiration was to have a representation in Polish
Sejm, recognition of Orthodox traditions and the gradual expansion of the
Cossack Registry, all being vehemently denied by the Polish kings. The cossacks turned toward Orthodox Russia, which was one reason for the later downfall of the Polish-Lithuanian state.
In 1648
Bohdan Khmelnytsky lead the
largest of the Cossack uprisings against the Commonwealth and the Polish king
John II Casimir. This uprising finally led to a partition of Ukraine between Poland and Russia.
Left-Bank Ukraine was eventually integrated into Russia as the
Cossack Hetmanate, following the
1654 Treaty of Pereyaslav. After the
partitions of Poland in the end of the eighteenth century by
Prussia,
Habsburg Austria, and
Russia at the end of the
eighteenth century, Western Ukrainian (
Galicia) was taken over by Austria, while the rest of Ukraine was progressively incorporated into the Russian Empire. Despite the promises of Ukrainian autonomy given by the treaty of Pereyaslav, Ukrainians never received the freedoms they were hoping for from
Imperial Russia. The Ukrainians played an important role in the frequent wars between East European monarchies and the
Ottoman Empire. As a result of Russian successes in the
wars against Turkey and Crimean Khanate of 1768-74 and 1787-1792, the territories along the
Black Sea coast were annexed to the Russian Empire as well. Within the Empire Ukrainians frequently rose to the highest offices of Russian state (e.g.,
Aleksey Razumovsky,
Alexander Bezborodko,
Ivan Paskevich), and dominated the
Russian Orthodox Church (e.g.,
Stephen Yavorsky,
Feofan Prokopovich,
Dimitry of Rostov). In the same time, the
tsar regime was implementing a harsh policy of
Russification,
banning the use of the
Ukrainian language in print, and in public.
World War I and Austro-Hungarian Rule
During
World War I Austro-Hungarian authorities subjected to repression Ukrainians in Galicia that sympathized with Russia. Over twenty thousand supporters of Russia are arrested and placed in the Austrian concentration camp in
Talerhof,
Styria, and in a fortress at
TerezÃn, now in the
Czech Republic.
Division and Early Soviet Years
|
Map of the West Ukrainian People's Republic |
With the Russian and Austrian empires' collapse following the
World War I and the
Russian Revolution of 1917 Ukrainian national movement for self-determination reemerged. During 1917-20 several separate Ukrainian states briefly emerged: the
Central Rada, the
Hetmanate, the
Directorate, the
Ukrainian People's Republic and the
West Ukrainian People's Republic. However, with the defeat of the latter in the
Polish-Ukrainian War and the failure of the Polish
Kiev Offensive (1920) of the
Polish-Soviet War, the
Peace of Riga concluded in March
1921 between
Poland and
Bolsheviks left Ukraine divided again. The western part of Ukraine had been incorporated into newly organized
Second Polish Republic, and the larger, central and eastern part, established as the
Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic in March of 1919, later became a constituent republic of the
Soviet Union, when it was formed in December of 1922.
The Ukrainian national idea lived on during the early-Soviet years and the
Ukrainian culture and
language even enjoyed a revival as the
Ukrainization became a local implementation of the Soviet-wide
Korenization ("indigenization") policy whose gains were sharply reversed by the early-
1930s policy changes.
Ukraine saw its share of the
Soviet industrialization starting from the late-1920s and the republic's industrial output quadrupled in the 1930s. However, the industrialization had a heavy cost for the peasantry, demographically a backbone of the Ukrainian nation. To satisfy the state's need for increased food supplies and finance industrialization, Stalin instituted a
program of collectivization of agriculture as the state combined the peasants' lands and animals into collective farms and enforcing the policies by the regular troops and secret police. Those who resisted were arrested and deported and the increased production quotas were placed on the peasantry despite the collectivization had a devastating effect on agricultural productivity. As the members of the collective farms were not allowed to receive any grain until the unachievable quotas were met, the starvation became widespread. Millions starved to death in a famine, known as the
Holodomor (available data is insufficient for precise calculations and estimates vary).
The times also coincided with the Soviet assault on the national political and cultural elite often accused in "nationalist deviations" as the
Ukrainization policies were reversed at the turn of the decade. Two waves of purges (1929-1934 and 1936-1938) resulted in the elimination of the four-fifth of the Ukrainian cultural elite.
World War II
During
World War II, some elements of the Ukrainian nationalist underground fought both
Nazi and Soviet forces, while others collaborated with them, having been ignored by all other powers. In
1941 the German invaders and their
Axis allies initially advanced against desperate but unsuccessful efforts of the
Red Army. In the encirclement battle of
Kiev, the city was acclaimed by the Soviets as a "
Hero City", for the fierce resistance of the Red Army and of the local population. More than 660,000 Soviet troops were taken captive.
Initially, the Germans were received as liberators by many Ukrainians, especially in western Ukraine which had only been occupied by the Soviets in 1939. However, German rule in the occupied territories eventually aided the Soviet cause. Nazi administrators of conquered Soviet territories made little attempt to exploit the population of Ukrainian territories' dissatisfaction with Soviet political and economic policies. Instead, the Nazis preserved the collective-farm system, systematically carried out genocidal policies against Jews, and deported others (mainly Ukrainians) to work in Germany. Under these circumstances, most people living on the occupied territory passively or actively opposed the Nazis.
Total civilian losses during the war and German occupation in Ukraine are estimated between five and eight million, including over half a million Jews killed by the
Einsatzgruppen, sometimes with the help of local collaborators. Of the estimated eleven million Soviet troops who fell in battle against the Nazis, about a quarter (2.7 million) were ethnic Ukrainians. Ukraine is distinguished as one of the first nations to fight the Axis powers in
Carpatho-Ukraine, and one that saw some of the greatest bloodshed during the war.
Reunification and Independence
After the Second World War, the borders of then-Soviet Ukraine were extended to the West (see
Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact and
Curzon line), uniting most Ukrainians under one political state with much of the non-Ukrainian population of the attached territories having been deported. After the war Ukraine became a member of the
United Nations Organization.
In 1954,
Crimea was transferred from the
RSFSR to Ukraine. This decision of
Nikita Khrushchev led to tensions between Russia and Ukraine after the
collapse of the Soviet Union.
1986 Nuclear reactor explosion in Chernobyl, Ukraine. (picture)
1980's National movement for the liberation of Ukraine "Rukh" is formed.
1990 Human chain protests for Ukrainian independence. (more)
1990 Ukrainian sovereignty is proclaimed.
1991 Ukrainian independence is proclaimed. Elections of Parliament (Verkhovna Rada) and the President Leonid Kravchuk.
Ukraine was a founding member of the
Commonwealth of Independent States.
1994 Ukraine signs an treaty with
NATO 1996 Constitution is proclaimed.
|
2006 Parliament election. Leading party by electoral districts |
|
Parliament of Ukraine, Kiev |
Ukraine is a
republic under a
semi-presidential system with separate legislative, executive, and judicial branches. The
President of Ukraine is elected by countrywide popular vote and is the head of the executive branch. The
Prime Minister is appointed by the 450-seat parliament, the
Verkhovna Rada. The parliament also approves the
Cabinet of Ministers, proposed by the Prime Minister and the President. The heads of all central agencies and regional and district administrations are appointed by the President.
Laws, acts of the parliament and the Cabinet, presidential edicts, and acts of the Crimean parliament (
Autonomous Republic of Crimea) may be nullified by the
Constitutional Court of Ukraine, when they are found to violate the
Constitution of Ukraine. Other normative acts are subject to judicial review. The
Supreme Court of Ukraine is the main body in the system of courts of general jurisdiction.
Local government is officially guaranteed. Local councils and city mayors are popularly elected and exercise control over local budgets. In practice, the scope of local self-government is limited.
Ukraine has a large number of political parties, many of which have tiny memberships and are unknown to the general public. Small parties often join in multi-party coalitions (electoral blocks) for the purpose of participating in parliamentary elections.See also:
*
Ukrainian parliamentary election, 2006*
Ukrainian presidential election, 2004*
Foreign relations of UkraineUkraine is divided into twenty-four
oblasts (
provinces) and one
autonomous republic (
avtonomna respublika),
Crimea. Additionally, two
cities (
misto),
Kiev and
Sevastopol, have a special legal status. The oblasts are subdivided into 494
raions (
districts).
The oblasts include:
 |
Map of Ukraine |
The Ukrainian landscape consists mostly of fertile plains, or
steppes, and plateaus, crossed by rivers such as the
Dnieper,
Seversky Donets,
Dniester and the
Southern Buh as they flow south into the
Black Sea and the smaller
Sea of Azov. To the southwest the
delta of the
Danube forms the border with Romania. The country's only mountains are the
Carpathian Mountains in the west, of which the highest is the
Hora Hoverla at 2,061 metres (6,762
ft), and those in the
Crimean peninsula, in the extreme south along the coast.
Ukraine has a mostly
temperate continental
climate, though a more
mediterranean climate is found on the southern Crimean coast.
Precipitation is disproportionately distributed; it is highest in the west and north and lesser in the 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, but generally hot in the south.
Formerly an important industrial and
agricultural region of the
Soviet Union, Ukraine now depends on
Russia for most energy supplies, especially
natural gas, although lately it has been trying to diversify its sources. The lack of significant structural reform has made the Ukrainian economy vulnerable to external shocks. After
1991 the government liberalised most prices and erected a legal framework for
privatisation, but widespread resistance to reform within the government soon stalled reform efforts and led to some backtracking. Output by
1999 had fallen to less than 40% of the
1991 level. Loose monetary policies pushed
inflation to
hyperinflationary levels in late
1993.
The current government has pledged to reduce the number of government agencies, streamline the regulatory process, create a legal environment to encourage entrepreneurs, and enact a comprehensive
tax overhaul. Reforms in the more politically sensitive areas of structural reform and land privatisation are still lagging. Outside institutions—particularly the
IMF—have encouraged Ukraine to quicken the pace and scope of reforms and have threatened to withdraw financial support.
The
GDP in
2000 showed strong export-based growth of 6%—the first growth since independence—and industrial production grew 12.9%. The economy continued to expand in
2001, as real GDP rose 9% and industrial output grew by over 14%. Growth was undergirded by strong domestic demand and growing consumer and investor confidence. Rapid economic growth in
2002 -
2004 is largely attributed to a surge in steel exports to China.
According to
2001 Ukrainian Census ethnic
Ukrainians make up 77.8% of the population. The minorities include significant groups of ethnic
Russians (17.3%),
Belarusians (0.6%),
Moldavians (0.5%),
Crimean Tatars (0.5%),
Bulgarians (0.4%),
Hungarians (0.3%),
Romanians (0.3%),
Poles (0.3%),
Jews (0.2%),
Armenians (0.2%),
Greeks (0.2%) and
Tatars (0.2%).
[Ethnical composition of the population of Ukraine according to the 2001 Census] The industrial regions in the east and south-east are the most heavily populated, and about 67.2% of the population lives in urban areas.
Ukrainian is the only
official state language.
Russian, which was a
de facto official language in the Soviet Union, is largely used by many people, especially in eastern and southern Ukraine. According to the census, 67.5% of the population declared Ukrainian as their native language and 29.6% declared Russian. It is sometimes difficult to determine the extent of the two languages , since many people use a
Surzhyk, a Ukrainian-Russian mix where the mixed vocabulary is often combined with Ukrainian grammar and pronunciation, while claiming in surveys that they speak Russian or Ukrainian (most of them are able to speak both literary languages though). Besides, some ethnic Ukrainians, while calling Ukrainian their "native" language, use Russian more frequently in their daily lives. These details result in a significant difference across different survey results, as even a small restating of a question switches responses of a significant group of people.
[According to the official 2001 census data [1][2] approximately 75% of Kiev's population responded "Ukrainian" to the native language (ridna mova) census question, and roughly 25% responded "Russian". On the other hand, when the question "What language do you use in everyday life?" was asked in the 2003 sociological survey, the Kievans' answers were distributed as follows: "mostly Russian": 52%, "both Russian and Ukrainian in equal measure": 32%, "mostly Ukrainian": 14%, "exclusively Ukrainian": 4.3%.]
Standard literary Ukrainian is mainly spoken in western and central Ukraine. In western Ukraine, Ukrainian is also the dominant language in cities (e.g.
Lviv). In central Ukraine, Ukrainian and Russian are both equally used in cities with Russian being more common in
Kiev,
["[As of 2006, in Kiev] Ukrainian is used a home by 23% the respondents [to a survey]; while 52% use Russian and 24% switch between both"]
. Available online in Russian and in Ukrainian[ while Ukrainian is the dominant language in rural communities. In eastern and southern Ukraine mainly Russian is used in cities and Surzhyk is used in rural areas. ]
The Government follows a policy of Ukrainization -- the increase of Ukrainian language, generally at the expense of Russian. This takes the form of use of Ukrainian in various spheres that are under Government control, such as schools, Government offices, and some media. This is even done in areas which are largely Russian-speaking. However, in non-Government areas of life, people are free to use whatever language they want to. [3] [4]
According to the Autonomous Republic of Crimea constitution, Ukrainian is the only state language of the republic.[The Constitution of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea] However, the republic's constitution specifically recognizes Russian as the language of the majority of its population and guarantees its usage "in all spheres of public life". Similarly, the Crimean Tatar language (the language of a sizeable 12% minority of the republic[Numerical composition of the population of Autonomous Republic of Crimea by All-Ukrainian census of the population 2001.[5]] is guaranteed a special state protection as well as the "languages of other nationalities". Russian speakers constitute an overwhelming majority of the Crimean population (77%) with Ukrainian and Crimean Tatar speakers comprise 10.1% and 11.4%, respectively.[Numerical composition of the population of Autonomous Republic of Crimea by All-Ukrainian census of the population 2001[6]]
Romanians and Moldavians are another significant minority in Ukraine concentrated mainly in Chernivtsi Oblast.
After independence, a significant change in the language of instruction in educational institutions took place. According to the Razumkov centre, while in 1991/92 49% of high school students were receiving their education in Ukrainian, and 50% in Russian, in 2000/01 70% of students attended Ukrainian schools (schools where Ukrainian is the primary language of instruction) while 29% were studying in Russian schools (both languages are studied in all schools in Ukraine as part of the curriculum). This trend is opposite to the changes in the 1970s and 80s when the number of Russian schools was constantly being increased. The transition toward Ukrainian language usage is taking a long time, and in some schools that had switched to Ukrainian from Russian, part or most of the instruction is still given in Russian.
In general, most of the population is bilingual, at least to some degree. Most of the Ukrainophone population is also fluent in Russian and many Russian native speakers in Ukraine are fluent in Ukrainian as well. An overwhelming majority has at least a reasonable command in Ukrainian even in primarily Russophone southern and eastern parts of the country.
In the context of low salaries and unemployment within Ukraine, labor emigration became a mass phenomenon at the end of the 1990s. Although estimates vary, approximately two to three million Ukrainian citizens are currently working abroad, most of them illegally, in construction, service, housekeeping, and agriculture industries. Moreover, many Ukrainian women have been dragged into prostitution in foreign lands, mainly Western Europe and Turkey.
Ukrainian embassies report that 300,000 Ukrainian citizens are working in Poland, 200,000 in Italy, approximately 200,000 in the Czech Republic, 150,000 in Portugal, 100,000 in Spain, 35,000 in Turkey, and 20,000 in the US. The largest number of Ukrainian workers abroad, about one million, are in the Russian Federation.[Caught Between East and West, Ukraine Struggles with Its Migration Policy][Emigration from Ukraine, The Economist, October 23, 2003] (see Demographics of Ukraine for more information)The dominant religion in Ukraine is Eastern Orthodox Christianity, which is currently split between three Church bodies. The distant second is the Eastern Rite Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, which practices the same liturgical and spiritual tradition as Eastern Orthodoxy, but is in communion with the See of Peter and recognizes the primacy of the Bishop of Rome as head of the Church. There are also smaller Roman Catholic, Protestant, Jewish and Muslim communities.The culture of the Ukraine has been formed by influences of its eastern and western neighbors. The architecture, music and dance of the Ukraine all reflect this.
Communist rule had quite a strong effect on the art and writing of the Ukraine. During the late 1920s and early 1930s, the Soviet began enforcing the socialist realism art style in the Ukraine. This style dictated that all artists and writers glorify the Soviet Regime with their talents. After the Soviet Union collapsed Ukrainian artists and writers again became free to express themselves as they wanted.
The tradition of the Easter egg had it's beginnings in the Ukraine. These eggs were drawn on with wax to create pattern. Dye was then added to give the eggs their delightful colors â€" the dye not affecting the wax coated parts of the egg. Once the whole egg was dyed, the wax was removed leaving only the colorful pattern. The tradition is thousands of years old and predates the arrival of Christianity in the country.The April 1986 disaster at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant in Ukraine was the product of a flawed Soviet reactor design coupled with serious mistakes made by the plant operators in the context of a system where training was minimal. It was a direct consequence of Cold War isolation and the resulting lack of any safety culture. Nobody off-site suffered from acute radiation effects. However, large areas of Belarus, Ukraine, Russia and beyond were contaminated in varying degrees. By the year 2000, about 4000 cases of thyroid cancer had been diagnosed in exposed children. An increased risk of leukemia due to radiation exposure from Chernobyl may become evident in future.
After the accident a 30km exclusion zone was established around the power plant. A new city Slavutich was built outside the exclusion zone to house and support the employees of the plant. The population of Slavutich is 26,500 including 8272 children.
The Chernobyl facility includes four reactors. Unit 4 was destroyed in the accident. Units 1 and 2 were decommissioned. Unit 3 was upgraded to make it safe and continued to produce power supplying about 2% of the Ukraine' electrical power until December 15th, 2000,when then-President Leonid Kuchma personally turned off Reactor 3 in an official ceremony, effectively shutting down the entire plant.:
In-line:
General* [https://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/up.html CIA World Factbook -
Ukraine]
*
Country profile: Ukraine,
BBC's Country Profile on Ukraine.
*
Country Briefings: Ukraine, by
The Economist*
Executive Briefing: Ukraine, by
Economist Intelligence Unit.
*
Special Report: Ukraine, ongoing coverage by
Guardian Unlimited*
Background Note: Ukraine, the
U.S. Department of State website
*
Ukraine, Portals to the World, Internet resources selected by
Library of Congress subject experts
*
"Ukraine: Briefly about Her Past and Present", in
Welcome to Ukraine, 2003, 1]
*
Gregorovich, Andrew, PhD. "Ukraine or 'the Ukraine"
*Official Ukraine
**The President of Ukraine—Official site
**Verkhovna Rada: the parliament of Ukraine—Official site
**Government Portal of Ukraine—Official governmental portal
**Archives of Ukraine
*Other links
**Ukrainian Community
**Ukraine regions and cities information
**History of Money Circulation in Ukraine
**First Ukrainian Money
**
*Culture
**Odessa Numismatics Museum
roa-rup:Ucrainii
nds-nl:Oekraïne
fiu-vro:Ukraina
