Area Total | 603,550 sq km |
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; warm summers across the greater part of the country, hot in the south |
Natural Resources | iron ore, coal, manganese, natural gas, oil, salt, sulfur, graphite, titanium, magnesium, kaolin, nickel, mercury, timber, arable land |
Imports | Russia 14.5%, China 11.3%, Germany 11.2%, Poland 7%, Belarus 6.7%, US 5.1% (2017) – energy, machinery and equipment, chemicals |
Government | semi-presidential republic |
Capital | Kyiv (Kiev) |
Population | 43,952,299 (July 2018 est.) |
Ethnicity | Ukrainian 77.8%, Russian 17.3%, Belarusian 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 est.) |
Language | Ukrainian (official) 67.5%, Russian (regional language) 29.6%, other (includes small Crimean Tatar-, Moldovan/Romanian-, and Hungarian-speaking minorities) 2.9% (2001 est.) |
Exports | Russia 9.2%, Poland 6.5%, Turkey 5.6%, India 5.5%, Italy 5.2%, China 4.6%, Germany 4.3% (2017) – ferrous and nonferrous metals, fuel and petroleum products, chemicals, machinery and transport equipment, foodstuffs |
News about Ukraine
- 'Sounds likely' the US will sanction Russia if Putin does not negotiate on Ukraine: Trump – videoby (Ukraine | The Guardian) on January 22, 2025
Fielding questions from reporters in Washington, newly inaugurated president Donald Trump said it 'sounds likely' that the US would impose sanctions on Russia if they refuse to take part in negotiations on the war in Ukraine. Asked if the US would keep sending weapons to the Ukraine or 'turn off the tap soon', Trump said 'we're looking at that' before […]
- Ukraine war briefing: Ukraine drones hit Russian oil depot; Trump floats fresh Russia sanctionsby Warren Murray and agencies (Ukraine | The Guardian) on January 22, 2025
Ukraine claims strikes on oil depot and aviation plant inside Russia; Trump talks Ukraine negotiations, Russia sanctions and how China should do more to end the war. What we know on day 1,064 See all our Ukraine war coverageUkraine fired a wave of drones into Russia sparking a blaze at an oil depot and explosions at a plant producing military aircraft, the […]
- Zelenskyy says Russia-Ukraine peace deal would require 200,000 allied troopsby Luke Harding in Kyiv (Ukraine | The Guardian) on January 21, 2025
Ukrainian president tells Davos that Europe must establish itself as an ‘indispensable’ player on the global stageVolodymyr Zelenskyy has said that “at least 200,000” allied troops would be needed to enforce any peace deal in Ukraine as he urged Europe to “take care of itself” as Donald Trump returns to power in the US.Speaking at the World […]
- Putin and Xi hold video call in show of unity hours after Trump inaugurationby Pjotr Sauer (Ukraine | The Guardian) on January 21, 2025
Timing may show two leaders want to coordinate approach in engaging with new US administration over UkraineUS politics live – latest updatesThe Russian president, Vladimir Putin, held a video call with his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, in a symbolic display of unity just hours after Donald Trump was sworn in as the 47th president of the US.Speaking […]
- Deportations, tariffs, pardons: what Trump has planned for day oneby Joseph Gedeon in Washington (Ukraine | The Guardian) on January 21, 2025
The incoming president is ready to sign a slew of executive orders on day one of his second term. Here’s what’s plannedIn the grand theatre of American politics, presidential inaugurations typically follow a familiar script: the oath, the speech, a few carefully chosen executive orders to satisfy campaign promises. Franklin D Roosevelt used his first […]
- Hope and scepticism in Ukraine as Zelenskyy says Trump can bring about ‘just peace’by Luke Harding in Kyiv (Ukraine | The Guardian) on January 21, 2025
Some in Kyiv think deal touted by US president is unrealistic but others have he will help end the warPeople in Kyiv expressed a mixture of hope and scepticism on Tuesday that Donald Trump can end the war in Ukraine, as Volodymyr Zelenskyy praised the US president as a “decisive” leader who would bring about a “just peace”.Trump described himself as […]
- Prosecuting the Powerful by Steve Crawshaw review – from the Nuremberg trials to the pursuit of Putin and Assadby Luke Harding (Ukraine | The Guardian) on January 21, 2025
This history of international justice is an important primer for our dark times and surprisingly optimistic about our chances of putting today’s despots in the dockOn a Monday morning last month the Russian general Igor Kirillov left his flat in Moscow. A powerful bomb hidden in an e-scooter blew him up. Ukraine’s SBU intelligence agency said it was […]
- Ukraine war briefing: Putin ‘destroying Russia’ and has to make a deal, says Trumpby Warren Murray and agencies (Ukraine | The Guardian) on January 21, 2025
US president claims he is preparing to meet Russian counterpart; Macron tells Europe to ‘wake up’ and spend more on defence. What we know on day 1,063 Continue reading...
- War and life in Ukraine: a year through the lensby Nikoletta Stoyanova (Ukraine | The Guardian) on January 20, 2025
Photographer Nikoletta Stoyanova juxtaposes scenes of destruction with moments of celebration from the ongoing conflict in Ukraine over the past year. Nikoletta is a recipient of the Ian Parry photojournalism grant which has offered financial support and mentoring to emerging photographers for the last three decades Continue reading...
- Ukraine war briefing: Russia suffered record casualties in 2024, claims Ukrainian commander in chiefby Guardian staff and agencies (Ukraine | The Guardian) on January 20, 2025
Oleksandr Syrskyi claims in interview that 150,000 Russian soldiers died last year; Ukraine shoots down 43 Russian drones. What we know on day 1,062.See all our Ukraine war coverageRussia suffered 434,000 casualties in 2024, the commander in chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, has claimed, saying it was more than the previous two years combined. Oleksandr […]
- Biden’s checkered foreign policy legacy looks like a blip in era of America Firstby Andrew Roth in Washington (Ukraine | The Guardian) on January 19, 2025
The outgoing US president rallied support for Ukraine but his stance on Gaza delighted no oneWhen asked about his foreign policy doctrine in 2014, Barack Obama described it as an attempt to “avoid errors”.“You hit singles, you hit doubles; every once in a while we may be able to hit a home run,” he said. Continue reading...
- ‘Animals can feel good and evil’: film puts new perspective on Ukraine warby Shaun Walker in Kyiv (Ukraine | The Guardian) on January 19, 2025
Collection of seven shorts due out in 2025 tells story of conflict from perspective of animalsThe occupying Russian soldiers paid little attention to the elderly woman shuffling through the farmland surrounding the villages outside Kyiv, taking her goat to pasture. But she was focused closely on them. After locating their positions, she headed back home […]
- Ukraine war briefing: Moscow reports gains in Donetsk in westward advanceby Guardian staff and agencies (Ukraine | The Guardian) on January 19, 2025
Russia’s defence ministry says its forces now control two more settlements in eastern Ukraine; Kyiv says ‘heinous’ attack kills three in capital. What we know on day 1,061See all our Ukraine war coverageRussian forces took control of two more settlements in eastern Ukraine’s Donetsk region, Moscow said on Saturday, the latest in a series of gains it […]
- Who will tame Donald Trump this time? Roll up, roll up, for the White House travelling circus | Simon Tisdallby Simon Tisdall (Ukraine | The Guardian) on January 18, 2025
On the eve of his return, it’s clear that world leaders, whether they like him or loathe him, can’t ignore this unpredictable showmanMichelle Obama’s one-woman boycott of Donald Trump’s presidential inauguration on Monday requires no explanation. It’s plain that the former first lady has zero tolerance and even less love for a man who delights in […]
- Suicides, new tactics and propaganda iPads: details from captured North Koreans expose new foe in Ukraineby Luke Harding in Bilopillia (Ukraine | The Guardian) on January 18, 2025
Discovery of two injured servicemen sent from Pyongyang and disguised as Russian fighters blows apart myth that Zelenskyy’s fight is solely with MoscowThe news was sensational. It travelled quickly among Ukrainian soldiers fighting in Russia’s Kursk region. “I heard from a friend of a friend,” one officer, Vitalii Ovcharenko, recalled. “This was […]
- Ukraine war briefing: Russia and Iran deepen defence ties as Trump inauguration loomsby Guardian staff and agencies (Ukraine | The Guardian) on January 18, 2025
Trump has pledged to broker peace in Ukraine and take tougher stance on Tehran; EU foreign policy chief urges bloc members to extend Russia sanctions. What we know on day 1,060See all our Ukraine war coverage Continue reading...
- Starmer urges world leaders to ‘double down’ on support for Ukraineby Peter Walker Senior political correspondent (Ukraine | The Guardian) on January 17, 2025
PM stressed shared ‘unbreakable commitment to Nato and Ukraine’ with Poland in meeting with Donald Tusk Keir Starmer has urged world leaders to “double down” in their efforts to support Ukraine during a visit to Poland, days before Donald Trump’s return to the US presidency risks jeopardising international solidarity on the issue.Speaking […]
- Russia-Ukraine war: Ukraine police conduct nationwide raids over draft evasion – as it happenedby Tom Ambrose (now) and Hamish Mackay (earlier) (Ukraine | The Guardian) on January 17, 2025
This live blog is now closed, you can read more of our Ukraine war coverage hereRussian forces have retaken 63.2% of the territory captured by Ukraine in the Kursk region of western Russia, the Russian defence ministry said on Friday.Reuters could not independently verify the ministry’s statement, which said Russia had recaptured four settlements in the […]
- Ukraine war briefing: Gravehawk revealed as new air defence system pledged by Starmerby Warren Murray and agencies (Ukraine | The Guardian) on January 17, 2025
British-Danish platform uses air-to-air missiles, but fired from the ground; another Russian fuel depot burns. What we know on day 1,059 Continue reading...
- UK to back Ukraine ‘beyond this terrible war’ with 100-year pact, says Starmerby Luke Harding in Kyiv (Ukraine | The Guardian) on January 16, 2025
PM visits Kyiv to agree partnership and says Putin shows no signs of wanting to stop ‘unrelenting aggression’Keir Starmer has announced a “historic” 100-year partnership with Ukraine, saying the UK would support the country “beyond this terrible war” and into a future where it is “free and thriving again”.Speaking during his first trip to […]