Claim: Slovakia is part of Europe.

Ukraine -LRB- -LSB- juːˈkreɪn -RSB- Україна , tr . Ukraina -LSB- ukrɑˈjinɑ -RSB- -RRB- , sometimes called the Ukraine , is a sovereign state in Eastern Europe , bordered by Russia to the east and northeast , Belarus to the northwest , Poland and Slovakia to the west , Hungary , Romania , and Moldova to the southwest , and the Black Sea and Sea of Azov to the south and southeast , respectively . Ukraine is currently in territorial dispute with Russia over the Crimean Peninsula which Russia annexed in 2014 but which Ukraine and most of the international community recognise as Ukrainian . Including Crimea , Ukraine has an area of 603628 km ² , making it the largest country entirely within Europe and the 46th largest country in the world . It has a population of about 42.5 million , making it the 32nd most populous country in the world .   The territory of modern Ukraine has been inhabited since 32,000 BC . During the Middle Ages , the area was a key centre of East Slavic culture , with the powerful state of Kievan Rus ' forming the basis of Ukrainian identity . Following its fragmentation in the 13th century , the territory was contested , ruled and divided by a variety of powers , including Lithuania , Poland , the Ottoman Empire , Austria-Hungary , and Russia . A Cossack republic emerged and prospered during the 17th and 18th centuries , but its territory was eventually split between Poland and the Russian Empire , and later merged fully into Russia .   During the 20th century three periods of independence occurred . The first of these periods occurred briefly near the end of World War I and the second occurred , also briefly , during World War II . However , both of these first two earlier periods would eventually see Ukraine 's territories consolidated back into a Soviet republic within the USSR . The third period of independence began in 1991 , when Ukraine gained its independence from the Soviet Union in the aftermath of its dissolution at the end of the Cold War . Ukraine has fiercely maintained its independence as a sovereign state ever since . Before its independence , Ukraine was typically referred to in English as `` The Ukraine '' , but sources since then have moved to drop `` the '' from the name of Ukraine in all uses .   Following its independence , Ukraine declared itself a neutral state . Nonetheless it formed a limited military partnership with the Russian Federation and other CIS countries and a partnership with NATO in 1994 . In the 2000s , the government began leaning towards NATO , and a deeper cooperation with the alliance was set by the NATO-Ukraine Action Plan signed in 2002 . It was later agreed that the question of joining NATO should be answered by a national referendum at some point in the future . Former President Viktor Yanukovych considered the current level of co-operation between Ukraine and NATO sufficient , and was against Ukraine joining NATO . In 2013 , protests against the government of President Yanukovych broke out in downtown Kiev after the government had decided to suspend the Ukraine-European Union Association Agreement and seek closer economic ties with Russia . After this began a several-months-long wave of demonstrations and protests known as the Euromaidan , which later escalated into the 2014 Ukrainian revolution that led to the overthrow of President Yanukovych and his cabinet and the establishment of a new government . These events formed the background for the annexation of Crimea by Russia in March 2014 , and the War in Donbass in April 2014 . On 1 January 2016 , Ukraine applied the economic part of the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area with the European Union .   Ukraine has long been a global breadbasket because of its extensive , fertile farmlands and is one of the world 's largest grain exporters . The diversified economy of Ukraine includes a large heavy industry sector , particularly in aerospace and industrial equipment .   Ukraine is a unitary republic under a semi-presidential system with separate powers : legislative , executive and judicial branches . Its capital and largest city is Kiev . Taking into account reserves and paramilitary personnel , Ukraine maintains the second-largest military in Europe after that of Russia . The country is home to 42.5 million people -LRB- excluding Crimea -RRB- , 77.8 percent of whom are Ukrainians `` by ethnicity '' , followed by a sizeable minority of Russians -LRB- 17.3 percent -RRB- as well as Romanians/Moldovans , Belarusians , Crimean Tatars , Bulgarians and Hungarians . Ukrainian is the official language and its alphabet is Cyrillic . The dominant religion in the country is Eastern Orthodoxy , which has strongly influenced Ukrainian architecture , literature and music .