Ukraine

Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It borders Hungary, Russia, Belarus, Poland, Moldova, and Romania.

The Ukrainian State in its modern form was formed on August 24, 1991, when the Verkhovna Rada of the Ukrainian SSR proclaimed the Act of Independence of Ukraine. Ukraine has access to the Black and Azov Seas, as well as to the Dnieper.

The capital of Ukraine is the city of Kyiv.

After the defeat in the Soviet-Ukrainian War (1917 - 1921) Ukraine was divided between two states - Poland and the Soviet Union. Poland occupied the western part of Ukraine, and the Soviet Union - the eastern. After the Partition of Poland in 1939, the western part of Ukraine was also occupied by the USSR. Ukraine gained independence from the USSR on August 24, 1991 with the govenment's adoption of the "Act of Independence of Ukraine". The majority of the Ukrainian population voted for independence in the referendum of the "Act of Independence" on December 1, 1991. Following this Leonid Kravchuk was elected president. On December 2, 1991, Ukraine's independence was recognized by Canada and Poland. By 1993, Ukraine's independence was recoginzed by more than 130 countries.

Leonid Kuchma was elected as the first president of Ukraine in 1994. The Constitution of Ukraine was adopted on June 28, 1996.