1. UKRAINE Land of natural beauty and hospitable people

2. Contents  Geographical Location  Religion  Administrative Division  Constitution  Landscape  President of Ukraine  Climate  State Power in Ukraine  Plant and Wildlife  Economics Structure  Natural Resources  Economic Fact sheet  Historical Milestones  Traditional Dress  Orange Revolution  Decorative Arts & Crafts  State Symbols  Ukrainian Cuisine  Money  Kyiv  Population  Famous Ukrainians  Ukrainian Language  Reasons to Visit Ukraine

3. Geographical Location Located in Central Eastern Europe Defined as a geographic center of Europe Links East & West Borders with: –Moldova –Romania –Hungary –Slovakia –Poland –Belarus –Russia Largest European country (total area is 603 700 sq. km) Has wide outlet to –the Black Sea –the Sea of Azov  Ukraine

4. Administrative Division Ukraine consists of: Autonomous Republic of Crimea; 24 administrative regions; 2 cities with a special status (Kyiv and Sevastopol). The largest cities of Ukraine: Kyiv, Kharkiv, Dnipropetrovsk, Donetsk, Odesa, Zaporizhia, and Lviv. According to the administrative territorial division, Ukraine comprises: 608 districts, including city/town districts; 1344 urban settlements, including 454 cities and towns; 28621 villages.

5. Landscape 95% of the country is flat Mountains: –the Carpathians in the West (Hoverla Mountain – 2 061 m) –the Crimean Mountains in the South (The Crimean Peninsula) (Roman-Kosh Mountain – 1 545 m) Seas: –the Black Sea (422 000 sq. km) –the Sea of Azov (39 000 sq. km) Rivers: –more than 73 thousand rivers –the biggest rivers: the Dnipro, the Danube, the Dniester, and the Southern Buh

6. Climate Summer temperatures Average: 18°-25° C (64,4° F to 77° F) In the South: up to +35° C (+95° F), with sea breezes softening the heat Winter temperatures Average: -8°-12° C (17.6° F to 3° F) In the South: ~0° C (32° F) The best time to visit Ukraine is in summer, late spring or early fall.

7. Plant and Wildlife 19 million hectares of natural vegetation 30 000 plant species 45 000 animal species 11 national nature parks 4 biosphere preservation areas 16 nature reserves National parks and reserves: – Askania-Nova (Kherson region) – Oleksandria (Kyiv region) – Sofiyivka (Cherkasy region) – Shatsky Lakes (Volyn region) – Trostyanetsky (Chernigiv region)

8. Natural Resources 25% of the world black topsoil 5% of the world mineral resources: –coal –iron and manganese ores –nickel, chromites, titanium, mercury –complex ores Non-mineral resources: –largest in the world mineral wax & brimstone deposits –greatest in Europe graphite deposits Perspectives: –oil at the Black Sea shelf –gold, copper and lead –semi-precious minerals

9. Historic Milestones 7th-10th centuries: Medieval Kyivan Rus' state; Christianity adopted by Prince Volodymyr. 12th century: First documented references to the term "Ukraine" appear. 16th century: Founding of the Zaporozhyan Sich, the military-administrative and political organization of the Ukrainian Cossacks. 1710: First Ukrainian Constitution by hetman Pylyp Orlyk – the first document in the world to establish a democratic standard for the separation of powers in government between the legislative, executive, and judiciary branches. 1918: Declaration of independence of the Ukrainian National Republic; Mykhaylo Hrushevsky elected first-ever President of Ukraine. 1922: The formation of the USSR, including the Ukrainian SSR. 1941-1944: Great Patriotic War: Germany occupies Ukraine. 1991: The state independence of Ukraine is proclaimed. 2004-2005: Orange Revolution – nationwide nonviolent protests that marked the presidential elections in Ukraine.

10. Orange Revolution Ukraine's "Orange Revolution" of 2004-2005 was a series of protests and political events that took place throughout the country in response to allegations of massive corruption, voter intimidation and direct electoral fraud during the 2004 Ukrainian presidential election.

11. State Symbols The State Flag of Ukraine is a banner made of two equal in size horizontal bars of blue and yellow. (Traditionally, blue is considered the color of clear sky, and yellow – the color of a wheat field). The State Emblem of Ukraine is the trident, the Symbol of Princely State of Volodymyr the Great. (From the antiquity revered as a magic sign and a kind of charm, the trident symbolized the division of the Universe into the heavenly, earthy, and one beyond; the combination of the divine, motherly and fatherly, the sacred origin and three natural elements – the air, water and earth).

12. Money The monetary unit is hryvnia (UAH). The National Bank of Ukraine is granted prerogative rights to put into circulation banknotes and coins. The NBU designs the bills and defines their face-value, assigns protective system and payment marks. 1 USD = 4.85 UAH 1 EUR = 7.63 UAH

13. Population 48.457 million people 5th largest in Europe 21st in the world over 130 nationalities highly educated people Density of population – 80 persons per sq.km. Urban population – 32 mln. Gender composition:Age composition: – female – 53.7%– middle age people – 58% – male – 46.3%– people of pension age – 23.9% – children – 18.1%

14. Ukrainian Language It is the only official language of Ukraine. (native for 67% of the country’s population) According to some survey, Ukrainian is defined as the second most beautiful language in the world, after Italian, while the third is French. Language of the East Slavonic subgroup of the Slavic languages. Uses a Cyrillic alphabet and shares some vocabulary with the languages of the neighboring Slavic nations (Belarusian, Polish, Russian, and Slovak). Traces its origins to the Old East Slavic language of the ancient state of Kievan Rus. Has persisted despite the numerous bans by Imperial Russia and political persecution during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Has survived mainly due to its broad base among the people of Ukraine, its folklore songs, kobzars, prominent poets like Taras Shevchenko and Lesya Ukrainka.

15. Religion The dominant religion in Ukraine is Eastern Orthodox Christianity, which is currently split between three Church bodies. The distant second is the Eastern Rite Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, which practices the same liturgical and spiritual tradition as Eastern Orthodoxy, but is in communion with the See of Peter and recognizes the primacy of the Pope of Rome. There are also smaller Roman Catholic, Protestant, Jewish and Muslim communities.

16. Constitution On behalf of the Ukrainian people the Verkhovna Rada (Ukrainian parliament) adopted the Constitution of Ukraine as the county’s Fundamental Law, in force July 28, 1996: General principles The rights, freedoms, and duties of individuals and citizens Elections, referendum The Supreme Rada of Ukraine The President of Ukraine The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine, other organs of executive authority The procuracy The justice system Territorial structure of Ukraine The Autonomous Republic of Crimea Local self-government The Constitutional Court of Ukraine Amending the Constitution of Ukraine Final provisions Transnational provisions

17. President of Ukraine Viktor Yushchenko was elected President of Ukraine in January 2005 to embody hope of millions of Ukrainians culminated in a democratic struggle, later to be known as the Orange Revolution. the Guarantor of state sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine the Guarantor of citizens’ rights and freedoms the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine

18. State Power in Ukraine Cabinet of MinistersVerkhovna Rada JudicialExecutiveLegislative Specialized Courts Courts of General Jurisdiction Speaker2 Vice-SpeakersSpeakerPrime-MinisterMinisters and Ministries The Commercial Court The Supreme Court Local Courts The Constitutional Court

19. Economics Structure

20. Economic Fact sheet Annual data 2005-actualHistorical averages (%) 2001-05 Economic Fact sheet Annual data 2005-actualHistorical averages (%) 2001-05 GDP (USD bln; 82.9 Real GDP growth 8.4 market exchange rate) GDP (USD bln; 317.3 Real domestic 9.4 purchasing power parity) demand growth GDP per head (USD; 1,773 Inflation 10.7 market exchange rate) GDP per head (USD; 6,787 Current-account balance 6.5 purchasing power parity) (% of GDP) Exchange rate (av): USD 5.12 FDI inflows (% of GDP) 2.2 From the Economist Intelligence Unit – July 31, 2006

21. Traditional Dress Ukrainian traditional clothing is characterized by wide regional and ethnic diversity. The conception of traditional dress is related to the region of Central Ukraine, although even adjacent villages display dissimilarity. Embroidery is the major adornment that encloses certain information about the owner (home location, gender, approximate age of an owner, function of garment). Traditional male dress: Shirt with embroidered front and open sleeves, pants of blue woolen fabric, wide red sash; outerwear of brown woolen cloth; gray Persian lamb hat; dark red fine leather boots. Traditional female dress: Embroidered shirt; woven skirt and apron; vest trimmed in black velvet; wreath with ribbons; coral necklace; red fine leather boots.

22. Decorative Arts & Crafts Ukraine has rich art heritage, unique potential of applied art products, which in main cases are entirely handmade. Their beauty, purity and naivety attract sophisticated collectors. The oldest types of folk applied arts and crafts: – woodcarving – carpet making – embroidery – pottery and ceramics – decorative painting Painting of pysanka (decorated Easter eggs) is a unique phenomenon in the decorative art of Ukraine.

23. Ukrainian Cuisine Ukrainian cuisine shows a sophisticated simplicity based on combinations of fresh, pickled, and smoked ingredients. Food is neither highly spiced nor bland, but skillfully seasoned to perfection. Bread is, of course, the mainstay of the Ukrainian diet. The country’s reputation as of the “breadbasket of Europe” is well deserved (77 ways of preparing bread). The most popular Ukrainian meals: “Borshch” – Ukrainian beet soup. “Varenyky” – dough pockets filled with potato, or sauerkraut, or cottage cheese, or blueberries, or cherries. “Holubtsi” – Ukrainian cabbage rolls. “Nalysnyky” – super thin pancakes stuffed with cottage cheese, or poppy, or apples, or honey and walnut.

24. Kyiv Founded over 1.5 millennia ago. Looks both ancient & young. 2.6 million inhabitants. Also known as: Center of the Slavic culture the Mother of all Rus cities the Majestic the City of Gardens Come to see: UNESCO World Heritage sites Millennia-old monasteries Medieval fortifications

25. World Famous Ukrainians Igor Sikorsky A pioneer of aviation, first successful helicopter designer Golda Meir The 4th Prime Minister of Israel Joseph Conrad A novelist, forerunner of modernism Jack Palance An Oscar-winning American actor Andy Warhol A legendary artist, avant- garde filmmaker and writer Dustin Hoffman A two-time Oscar-winning American film actor Milla Jovovich An American supermodel, actress and singer Sergiy Bubka A multiple world record- breaker in pole vaulting Vitaliy Klitchko A professional boxer, WBC Intercontinental Champion Andriy Shevchenko One of Europe’s prominent soccer strikers

26. Reasons to Visit Ukraine natural beauty cultural heritage hospitable people delicious cuisine business opportunities no visa required for US and EU citizens staying for less than 90 days in Ukraine

27. WELCOMETOUKRAINE!