Ukraine

**Ukraine** ( ), whiles cried '''the Ukraine''', is a sovereign state in Eastren Europe, mairchit bi Roushie tae the east an northeast; Belaroushie tae the northwast; Poland, Hungary, an Slovakie tae the wast; Romanie an Moldovae tae the soothwast; an the Black Sea an Sea o Azov tae the sooth an sootheast, respectively. Ukraine is currently in a territorial dispute wi Roushie ower the Crimean Peninsula, that Roushie annexed in 2014 but that Ukraine an maist o the internaitional commonty recognise as Ukrainian. Includin Crimea, Ukraine haes an aurie o , makkin it the mucklest kintra entirely within Europe an the 46t mucklest kintra in the warld. Excludin Crimea, Ukraine haes a population o aboot 42.5 million, makkin it the 32nt maist populous kintra in the warld.

The territory o modren Ukraine haes been inhabitit syne 32,000 BC. In the Middle Ages, the aurie wis a key centre o East Slavic cultur, wi the pouerfu state o Kievan Rus' formin the basis o Ukrainian identity. Follaein its fragmentation in the 13t century, the territory wis contestit, ruled an dividit bi a variety o pouers, includin Lithuanie, Poland, the Ottoman Empire, Austrick-Hungary, an Roushie. A Cossack republic emerged an prospered in the 17t an 18t centuries, but its territory wis eventually split atween Poland an the Roushie Empire, an later merged fully intae Roushie.

In the 20t century three periods o unthirldom occurred. The first o thir periods occurred briefly in an immediately efter the German occupation near the end o Warld War I an the seicont occurred, an aa briefly, an an aa in German occupation, in Warld War II. Houiver, baith o thir first twa earlier periods wad eventually see Ukraine's territories consolidatit back intae a Soviet republic within the USSR. The third period o unthirldom begoud in 1991, whan Ukraine gained its unthirldom frae the Soviet Union in the eftermath o its dissolution at the end o the Cauld War. Ukraine haes maintained its unthirldom as a sovereign state iver syne. Afore its unthirldom, Ukraine wis teepically referred tae as "The Ukraine", but soorces syne then hae muived tae drap "the" frae the name o Ukraine in aw uises.

Follaein its unthirldom, Ukraine declared itsel a neutral state. Nanetheless it formed a leemitit militar pairtnership wi the Roushie Federation an ither CIS kintras an a pairtnership wi NATO in 1994. In the 2000s, the govrenment begoud leanin taewart NATO, an a deeper cooperation wi the alliance wis set bi the NATO-Ukraine Action Plan signed in 2002. It wis later agreed that the quiasten o jynin NATO shoud be answered bi a naitional referendum at some pynt in the futur. Umwhile Preses Viktor Yanukovych conseedert the current level o co-operation atween Ukraine an NATO sufficient, an wis against Ukraine jynin NATO. In 2013, efter the govrenment o Preses Yanukovych ha decidit tae suspend the Ukraine-European Union Association Greement an seek closer economic ties wi Roushie, a several-months-lang wave o demonstrations an protests kent as the Euromaidan begoud, that later escalatit intae the 2014 Ukrainian revolution that led tae the owerthraw o Preses Yanukovych an his cabinet an the establishment o a new govrenment. Thir events formed the backgrund for the annexation o Crimea bi Roushie in Mairch 2014, an the War in Donbass in Apryle 2014. On 1 Januar 2016, Ukraine applee'd the economic pairt o the Deep an Comprehensive Free Tred Aurie wi the European Union.

Ukraine haes lang been a global breidbasket acause o its extensive, growthie fermlands an is ane o the warld's mucklest grain exporters. The diversified economy o Ukraine includes a muckle hivy industry sector, pairteecularly in aerospace an industrial equipment.

Ukraine is a unitar republic unner a semi-presidential seestem wi separate pouers: legislative, executive an judicial brainches. Its caipital an mucklest ceety is Kiev. Takkin intae accoont reserves an paramilitar personnel, Ukraine mainteens the seicont-mucklest military in Europe efter that o Roushie. The kintra is hame tae 42.5 million fowk (excludin Crimea), 77.8 percent o that are Ukrainians "bi ethnicity", follaed bi a sizeable minority o Roushies (17.3 percent) as weel as Georgies, Romanies/Moldovans, Belaroushies, Crimean Tatars, Bulgaries an Hungarians. Ukrainian is the offeecial leid an its alphabet is Cyrillic. The dominant releegion in the kintra is Eastren Orthodoxy, that haes strangly influenced Ukrainian airchitectur, leeteratur an muisic. It is a member o the Unitit Naitions syne its foondin, the Cooncil o Europe, OSCE, GUAM, an ane o the foondin states o the Commonweel o Independent States (CIS).

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