Ukraine

Ukraine (Ukrainian: Україна, tr. Ukrayina) is a sovereign state in Eastern Europe,  bordered by Russia to the east and northeast, Belarus to the northwest, Poland to the west, Hungary-Croatia and Romania to the southwest, and the Black Sea and Sea of Azov to the south. Ukraine has an area of 703.500 km² (271.623 sq mi), making it the largest country  within Europe besides Russia. It has a population of about 51.9 million.

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 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 World War II it was liberatet by German and other Central Power Forces. The offical independance date is 24 August 1944,  when the winners ofthe war recognised Ukraines' independece. In the Cold War it was part of the European Bloc and is now part of the European Union. 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.

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, The country is home to 51.9 million people, 89.9 percent of whom are Ukrainians "by ethnicity", followed by a sizeable minority of Russians (5.3 percent) 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.