ARCHIVE // UA // 1996
Ukraine
1996 Edition — sovereign
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Communications
Military and security forces
(Branches)
[time series]
Army, Navy, Air and Air Defense Forces, Internal Troops, National Guard, Border Troops
Military expenditures
(Defense expenditures)
[time series]
1.35 billion hryvni, less than 2% of GDP (Ukrainian Government's forecast for 1996); note - conversion of defense expenditures into US dollars using the current exchange rate could produce misleading results
Manpower availability
[time series]
males age 15-49: 12,388,788 males fit for military service: 9,716,127 males reach military age (18) annually: 362,000 (1996 est.)
Broadcast media
(Radio broadcast stations)
[time series]
AM NA, FM NA, shortwave NA; note - there are at least two radio broadcast stations of NA type
Radios
[time series]
15 million (1990)
Telecommunication systems
(Telephone system)
[time series]
system is unsatisfactory both for business and for personal use; 3.56 million applications for telephones had not been satisfied as of January 1991; electronic mail services have been established in Kiev, Odessa, and Luhans'k by Sprint domestic: an NMT-450 analog cellular telephone network operates in Kiev (Kyyiv) and allows direct dialing of international calls through Kiev's digital exchange international: calls to other CIS countries are carried by landline or microwave radio relay; calls to 167 other countries are carried by satellite or by the 150 leased lines through the Moscow international gateway switch; satellite earth stations - NA Intelsat, 1 Inmarsat (Atlantic and Indian Ocean Regions), and NA Intersputnik
Telephones - fixed lines
(Telephones)
[time series]
NA
Broadcast media
(Television broadcast stations)
[time series]
at least 2
Televisions
[time series]
17.3 million (1992) Defense
Economy
Agricultural products
(Agriculture)
[time series]
grain, sugar beets, vegetables; meat, milk
Budget
[time series]
revenues: $NA expenditures: $NA, including capital expenditures of $NA
Exchange rates
(Currency)
[time series]
on 2 September 1996, Ukraine introduced the long-awaited hryvnia (plural hryvni) as its national currency, replacing the karbovanets (in circulation since 12 November 1992) at a rate of 100,000 karbovantsi to 1 hryvnia
Economic aid
[time series]
recipient: ODA, $220 million (1993) note: commitments, 1992-95, $4.5 billion ($4.1 billion drawn)
Economic overview
[time series]
After Russia, the Ukrainian republic was far and away the most important economic component of the former Soviet Union, producing about four times the output of the next-ranking republic. Its fertile black soil generated more than one-fourth of Soviet agricultural output, and its farms provided substantial quantities of meat, milk, grain, and vegetables to other republics. Likewise, its diversified heavy industry supplied equipment and raw materials to industrial and mining sites in other regions of the former USSR. In early 1992, the Ukrainian Government liberalized most prices and erected a legal framework for privatization, but widespread resistance to reform within the government and the legislature soon stalled reform efforts and led to some backtracking. Loose monetary policies pushed inflation to hyperinflationary levels in late 1993. Since his election in July 1994, President KUCHMA has developed a comprehensive economic reform program, maintained financial discipline, and removed almost all controls over prices and foreign trade. Implementation of KUCHMA's economic agenda is encountering considerable resistance from parliament, entrenched bureaucrats, and industrial interests. However, should KUCHMA succeed in implementing aggressive market reforms during 1996, the economy may stabilize and possibly achieve real growth in the range of 0.5%-1%.
Electricity
[time series]
capacity: 54,380,000 kW production: 192.1 billion kWh consumption per capita: 3,200 kWh (1995 est.)
Exchange rates
[time series]
hryvnia per US$1 - 1.76 (2 September 1996)
Exports
[time series]
$11.3 billion (1995) commodities: coal, electric power, ferrous and nonferrous metals, chemicals, machinery and transport equipment, grain, meat partners: other FSU countries, China, Italy, Switzerland
Debt - external
(External debt)
[time series]
$8.8 billion (including $4.5 billion to Russia) (late 1995 est.)
Fiscal year
[time series]
calendar year
Real GDP (purchasing power parity)
(GDP)
[time series]
purchasing power parity - $174.6 billion (1995 estimate as extrapolated from World Bank estimate for 1994)
GDP - composition, by sector of origin
(GDP composition by sector)
[time series]
agriculture: 31% industry: 43% services: 26% (1993 est.)
Real GDP per capita
(GDP per capita)
[time series]
$3,370 (1995 est.)
Real GDP growth rate
(GDP real growth rate)
[time series]
-4% (1995 est.)
Illicit drugs
[time series]
illicit cultivator of cannabis and opium poppy; mostly for CIS consumption; limited government eradication program; used as transshipment point for illicit drugs to Western Europe
Imports
[time series]
$10.7 billion (1995) commodities: energy, machinery and parts, transportation equipment, chemicals, textiles partners: other FSU countries, Germany, Poland, Czech Republic
Industrial production growth rate
[time series]
-11% (1995 est.)
Industries
[time series]
coal, electric power, ferrous and nonferrous metals, machinery and transport equipment, chemicals, food-processing (especially sugar)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)
[time series]
9% monthly average (1995)
Labor force
[time series]
23.55 million (January 1994) by occupation: industry and construction 33%, agriculture and forestry 21%, health, education, and culture 16%, trade and distribution 7%, transport and communication 7%, other 16% (1992)
Unemployment rate
[time series]
0.7% officially registered; large number of unregistered or underemployed workers (December 1995)
Geography
Area
[time series]
total area: 603,700 sq km land area: 603,700 sq km comparative area: slightly smaller than Texas
Climate
[time series]
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; summers are warm across the greater part of the country, hot in the south
Coastline
[time series]
2,782 km
Environment - current issues
(Environment)
[time series]
current issues: inadequate supplies of potable water; air and water pollution; deforestation; radiation contamination in the northeast from 1986 accident at Chornobyl' Nuclear Power Plant natural hazards: NA international agreements: party to - Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Environmental Modification, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution; signed, but not ratified - Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Climate Change, Law of the Sea
Geographic coordinates
[time series]
49 00 N, 32 00 E
Geography - note
(Geographic note)
[time series]
strategic position at the crossroads between Europe and Asia; second-largest country in Europe
Disputes - international
(International disputes)
[time series]
certain territory of Moldova and Ukraine - including Bessarabia and Northern Bukovina - are considered by Bucharest as historically a part of Romania; this territory was incorporated into the former Soviet Union following the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact in 1940; dispute with Romania over continental shelf of the Black Sea under which signifcant gas and oil deposits may exist; potential dispute with Russia over Crimea; has made no territorial claim in Antarctica (but has reserved the right to do so) and does not recognize the claims of any other nation
Irrigated land
[time series]
26,000 sq km (1990)
Land boundaries
[time series]
total: 4,558 km border countries: Belarus 891 km, Hungary 103 km, Moldova 939 km, Poland 428 km, Romania (southwest) 169 km, Romania (west) 362 km, Russia 1,576 km, Slovakia 90 km
Land use
[time series]
arable land: 56% permanent crops: 2% meadows and pastures: 12% forest and woodland: 0% other: 30%
Location
[time series]
Eastern Europe, bordering the Black Sea, between Poland and Russia
Map references
[time series]
Commonwealth of Independent States
Maritime claims
[time series]
continental shelf: 200-m or to the depth of exploitation exclusive economic zone: undefined territorial sea: 12 nm
Natural resources
[time series]
iron ore, coal, manganese, natural gas, oil, salt, sulfur, graphite, titanium, magnesium, kaolin, nickel, mercury, timber
Terrain
[time series]
most of Ukraine consists of fertile plains (steppes) and plateaux, mountains being found only in the west (the Carpathians), and in the Crimean Peninsula in the extreme south lowest point: Black Sea 0 m highest point: Hora Hoverla 2,061 m
Government
Administrative divisions
[time series]
24 oblasti (singular - oblast'), 1 autonomous republic* (avtomnaya respublika), and 2 municipalites (mista, singular - misto) with oblast status**; Cherkas'ka (Cherkasy), Chernihivs'ka (Chernihiv), Chernivets'ka (Chernivtsi), Dnipropetrovs'ka (Dnipropetrovs'k), Donets'ka (Donets'k), Ivano-Frankivs'ka (Ivano-Frankivs'k), Kharkivs'ka (Kharkiv), Khersons'ka (Kherson), Khmel'nyts'ka (Khmel'nyts'kyy), Kirovohrads'ka (Kirovohrad), Kyyiv**, Kyyivs'ka (Kiev), Luhans'ka (Luhans'k), L'vivs'ka (L'viv), Mykolayivs'ka (Mykolayiv), Odes'ka (Odesa), Poltavs'ka (Poltava), Respublika Krym* (Simferopol'), Rivnens'ka (Rivne), Sevastopol'**, Sums'ka (Sevastopol'), Ternopil's'ka (Ternopil'), Vinnyts'ka (Vinnytsya), Volyns'ka (Luts'k), Zakarpats'ka (Uzhhorod), Zaporiz'ka (Zaporizhzhya), Zhytomyrs'ka (Zhytomyr) note: names in parentheses are administrative centers when name differs from oblast' name
Capital
[time series]
Kiev (Kyyiv)
Constitution
[time series]
adopted 28 June 1996
Legislative branch
(Council of Regions)
[time series]
advisory body created by President KUCHMA in September 1994; includes the chairmen of Oblast and Kiev and Sevastopol City Supreme Councils
Data code
[time series]
UP
Diplomatic representation in the US
(Diplomatic representation in US)
[time series]
chief of mission: Ambassador Yuriy Mikolayevych SHCHERBAK chancery: 3350 M Street NW, Washington, DC 20007 telephone: [1] (202) 333-0606
Executive branch
[time series]
chief of state: President Leonid D. KUCHMA (since 19 July 1994) was elected for a five-year term by direct popular vote; election last held 26 June and 10 July 1994 (next to be held NA 1999); results - Leonid KUCHMA 52.15%, Leonid KRAVCHUK 45.06% head of government: Prime Minister Yevhen MARCHUK (since NA June 1995), First Deputy Prime Minister Pavlo LAZARENKO (since NA), and eight deputy prime ministers were appointed by the president and approved by the Supreme Council cabinet: Council of Ministers was appointed by the president and approved by the Supreme Council
Diplomatic representation in the US
(FAX)
[time series]
[1] (202) 333-0817 consulate(s) general: Chicago and New York
Diplomatic representation in the US
(FAX)
[time series]
[380] (44) 244-7350
Flag
[time series]
two equal horizontal bands of azure (top) and golden yellow represent grainfields under a blue sky
Independence
[time series]
1 December 1991 (from Soviet Union)
International organization participation
[time series]
BSEC, CCC, CE, CIS, EBRD, ECE, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, NACC, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCRO, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMOT, UNPREDEP, UNPROFOR, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO (applicant)
Judicial branch
[time series]
Supreme Court is the highest judicial body; Constitutional Court has exclusive jurisdiction over interpretation of the constitution and laws
Legal system
[time series]
based on civil law system; judicial review of legislative acts
Legislative branch
[time series]
unicameral
Country name
(Name of country)
[time series]
conventional long form: none conventional short form: Ukraine local long form: none local short form: Ukrayina former: Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic
Legislative branch
(National Security Council)
[time series]
originally created in 1992, but significantly revamped and strengthened under President KUCHMA; members include the president, prime minister, ministers of finance, environment, justice, internal affairs, foreign economic relations, economic and foreign affairs; the NSC staff is tasked with developing national security policy on domestic and international matters and advising the president
National holiday
[time series]
Independence Day, 24 August (1991)
Political parties
(Other political or pressure groups)
[time series]
New Ukraine (Nova Ukrayina); Congress of National Democratic Forces
Political parties
(Political parties and leaders)
[time series]
Green Party of Ukraine, Vitaliy KONONOV, leader; Liberal Party of Ukraine, Volodymyr SHCHERBAN; Liberal Democratic Party of Ukraine, Volodymyr KLYMCHUK, chairman; Democratic Party of Ukraine, Volodymyr Oleksandrovych YAVORIVSKIY, chairman; People's Party of Ukraine; Peasants' Party of Ukraine; Party of Democratic Rebirth (Revival) of Ukraine, Volodymyr FILENKO, chairman; Social Democratic Party of Ukraine, Vasyl ONOPENKO, chairman; Socialist Party of Ukraine, Oleksandr MOROZ, chairman; Ukrainian Christian Democratic Party, Vitaliy ZHURAVSKYY, chairman; Ukrainian Conservative Republican Party, Stepan KHMARA, chairman; Ukrainian Labor Party, Valentyn LANDYK, chairman; Ukrainian Party of Justice, Yuriy ZUBKO, chairman; Ukrainian Peasants' Democratic Party, Serhiy PLACHINDA, chairman; Ukrainian Republican Party, Bondan YAROSHPSKYY, chairman; Ukrainian National Conservative Party; Ukrainian People's Movement for Restructuring (Rukh), Vyacheslav CHORNOVIL, chairman; Ukrainian Communist Party, Petr SYMONENKO; Agrarian Party; Congress of Ukrainian Nationalists, Slava STESTKO; Civil Congress, O. BAZYLUK; Party of Economic Revival of Crimea; Progressive Socialist Party of Ukraine, Nataliya VITRENKO and Volodymyr MARCHENKO, leaders; People's Democratic Party, Anatoliy MATVIYENKO, chairman
Legislative branch
(Presidential Administration)
[time series]
helps draft presidential edicts and provides policy support to the president
Suffrage
[time series]
18 years of age; universal
Legislative branch
(Supreme Council)
[time series]
elections last held 27 March 1994 with repeat elections continuing through December 1998 to fill empty seats (next to be held NA); results - percent of vote by party NA; seats - (450 total) Communists 91, Rukh 22, Agrarians 18, Socialists 15, Republicans 11, Congress of Ukrainian Nationalists 5, Labor 5, Party of Democratic Revival 4, Democrats 2, Social Democrats 2, Civil Congress 2, Conservative Republicans 1, Party of Economic Revival of Crimea 1, Christian Democrats 1, independents 225; note - most recent repeat election held in April 1996 filling 422 of 450 seats as follows: independents 238, Communist 95, Rukh 22, Agrarians 18, Socialist 15, Republicans 11, Congress of Ukrainian Nationalists 5, Labor 5, Party of Democratic Revival 4, Democratic Party of Ukraine 2, Social Democrats 2, Civil Congress 2, Conservative Republicans 1, Party of Economic Rivival of Crimea 1, Christian Democrats 1, vacant 28
Government type
(Type of government)
[time series]
republic
Diplomatic representation from the US
(US diplomatic representation)
[time series]
chief of mission: Ambassador William Green MILLER embassy: 10 Yuria Kotsyubinskovo, 252053 Kiev 53 mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [380] (44) 244-7345
People
Age structure
[time series]
0-14 years: 20% (male 5,139,034; female 4,936,901) 15-64 years: 66% (male 16,135,671; female 17,433,600) 65 years and over: 14% (male 2,318,629; female 4,900,174) (July 1996 est.)
Birth rate
[time series]
11.17 births/1,000 population (1996 est.)
Death rate
[time series]
15.16 deaths/1,000 population (1996 est.)
Ethnic groups
(Ethnic divisions)
[time series]
Ukrainian 73%, Russian 22%, Jewish 1%, other 4%
Infant mortality rate
[time series]
22.5 deaths/1,000 live births (1996 est.)
Languages
[time series]
Ukrainian, Russian, Romanian, Polish, Hungarian
Life expectancy at birth
[time series]
total population: 66.8 years male: 61.54 years female: 72.32 years (1996 est.)
Literacy
[time series]
age 15 and over can read and write (1989 est.) total population: 98% male: 100% female: 97%
Nationality
[time series]
noun: Ukrainian(s) adjective: Ukrainian
Net migration rate
[time series]
0.03 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1996 est.)
Population
[time series]
50,864,009 (July 1996 est.)
Population growth rate
[time series]
-0.4% (1996 est.)
Religions
[time series]
Ukrainian Orthodox - Moscow Patriarchate, Ukrainian Orthodox - Kiev Patriarchate, Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox, Ukrainian Catholic (Uniate), Protestant, Jewish
Sex ratio
[time series]
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.93 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.47 male(s)/female all ages: 0.86 male(s)/female (1996 est.)
Total fertility rate
[time series]
1.6 children born/woman (1996 est.)
Transportation
Airports
[time series]
total: 706 with paved runways over 3 047 m: 14 with paved runways 2 438 to 3 047 m: 55 with paved runways 1 524 to 2 437 m: 34 with paved runways 914 to 1 523 m: 3 with paved runways under 914 m: 57 with unpaved runways over 3 047 m: 7 with unpaved runways 2 438 to 3 047 m: 7 with unpaved runways 1 524 to 2 437 m: 16 with unpaved runways 914 to 1 523 m: 37 with unpaved runways under 914 m: 476 (1994 est.)
Roadways
(Highways)
[time series]
total: 169,964 km paved: 168,094 km (including 1,767 km of expressways) unpaved: 1,870 km (1992 est.)
Merchant marine
[time series]
total: 353 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 3,262,341 GRT/4,356,374 DWT ships by type: barge carrier 5, bulk 39, cargo 217, chemical tanker 2, combination bulk 1, container 11, multifunction large-load carrier 3, oil tanker 21, passenger 7, passenger-cargo 5, railcar carrier 2, refrigerated cargo 5, roll-on/roll-off cargo 32, short-sea passenger 3 (1995 est.)
Pipelines
[time series]
crude oil 2,010 km; petroleum products 1,920 km; natural gas 7,800 km (1992)
Ports
[time series]
Berdyans'k, Illichivs'k, Izmayil, Kerch, Kherson, Kiev (Kyyiv), Mariupol', Mykolayiv, Odesa, Pivdenne, Reni
Railways
[time series]
total: 23,350 km broad gauge: 23,350 km 1.524-m gauge (8,600 km electrified)
Waterways
[time series]
4,400 km navigable waterways, of which 1,672 km were on the Pryp''yat' and Dnipro (1990)