UKRAINE
Ukraine is located in
Central Europe and borders Russia, Byelorussia, Moldova, Slovakia, Romania,
Hungary and Poland on land, along with Russia, Georgia, Bulgaria, Romania, and
Turkey by sea. Ukraine has a
population of 48,396,470, which is comprised mainly of Ukrainians (77.8%) and
Russians (17.3%), along with smaller ethnic groups.
The capital of Ukraine is Kiev, population 2.6 million.
The GDP of Ukraine is US$108.5 billion with an inflation rate of 20%.
Currently Ukraine is not a member of the European Union.
The Ukrainian territory
is a steppe, a level treeless plain, with small mountains in the Crimean
peninsula in the west. One of
Europe’s longest rivers, the Dnieper, runs through Ukraine, which provides
most of the country’s hydroelectric power.
Ukraine has a moderate climate, with snow in the winter (except in the
south) and a hot and dry summer. Ukraine
is known for its fertile soil, which receives plenty of water in the spring and
abundant sunshine in the summer. These
favorable conditions make Ukraine one of the world’s largest sugar producers,
both for its own purposes and for export. Natural
resources are also abundant in Ukraine including, iron ore, coal, color metal,
oil, gas, mineral salts, clay and potential water power.
References (and further
information):
www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/up.html
www.lonelyplanet.com/destinations/europe/ukraine/printable.htm
WorldBoston's Community
Connections has hosted groups from the following cities in Ukraine:
Odessa
Odessa is the third
largest city in Ukraine, and is the capital city of the Odessa region.
Odessa experiences long hot summers and short mild winters and is overall
a dry climate. This city was founded by Catherine the Great in 1794 after
she thought that Russia needed a port on the Black Sea. Today Odessa has a population of 1.1 million and is becoming
a resort town because of all the beaches along the Black Sea.
Odessa is home to a University, opera and ballet theater, historical
museum, municipal library and astronomical observatory, to name a few of its
cultural attractions.
Reference (and further
information):
http://www.odessaglobe.com/english/information.htm#General%20Information
Vinnytsya (or Vinnytsia)
is located in west-central Ukraine on the Southern Bug River. It is the capital of the Vinnytsya Region, the population of
the region is 2 million, and the population of Vinnytsya city is 379,000.
Vinnytsya was founded in the 14th century around a Lithuanian fortress.
However, archeological excavations have discovered that the area was
inhabited by Slav tribes in ancient times.
In 1569 Poland took over Vinnytsya, and then it was annexed by Russia in
1793. In World War II, the city was
occupied by the Germans from 1941-1944. There
is a railroad conjunction that is located in Vinnytsya that is important for the
agricultural sector. Manufacturing
machinery, fertilizer, clothing, and food processing (especially beet sugar) are
important industries in Vinnytsya. The
area is also known for pottery, embroidery, weaving and carpet making.
Vinnytsya is also home to a medical, technical, pedagogical, and
agricultural university.
References (and further
information):
http://pages.prodigy.net/euroscope/vinnytsya.html