boroughs**, 12 cities and boroughs***, 10 districts****, 12 cities*****,
3 royal boroughs******; Barking and Dagenham**, Barnet**, Barnsley, Bath
and North East Somerset****, Bedfordshire*, Bexley**, Birmingham***,
Blackburn with Darwen, Blackpool, Bolton, Bournemouth, Bracknell
Forest, Bradford***, Brent**, Brighton and Hove, City of Bristol*****,
Bromley**, Buckinghamshire*, Bury, Calderdale, Cambridgeshire*, Camden**,
Cheshire*, Cornwall*, Coventry***, Croydon**, Cumbria*, Darlington,
Derby*****, Derbyshire*, Devon*, Doncaster, Dorset*, Dudley, Durham*,
Ealing**, East Riding of Yorkshire****, East Sussex*, Enfield**, Essex*,
Gateshead, Gloucestershire*, Greenwich**, Hackney**, Halton, Hammersmith
and Fulham**, Hampshire*, Haringey**, Harrow**, Hartlepool, Havering**,
Herefordshire*, Hertfordshire*, Hillingdon**, Hounslow**, Isle of Wight*,
Islington**, Kensington and Chelsea******, Kent*, City of Kingston upon
Hull*****, Kingston upon Thames******, Kirklees, Knowsley, Lambeth**,
Lancashire*, Leeds***, Leicester*****, Leicestershire*, Lewisham**,
Lincolnshire*, Liverpool***, City of London*****, Luton, Manchester***,
Medway, Merton**, Middlesbrough, Milton Keynes, Newcastle upon Tyne***,
Newham**, Norfolk*, Northamptonshire*, North East Lincolnshire****, North
Lincolnshire****, North Somerset****, North Tyneside, Northumberland*,
North Yorkshire*, Nottingham*****, Nottinghamshire*, Oldham, Oxfordshire*,
Peterborough*****, Plymouth*****, Poole, Portsmouth*****, Reading,
Redbridge**, Redcar and Cleveland, Richmond upon Thames**, Rochdale,
Rotherham, Rutland****, Salford***, Shropshire*, Sandwell, Sefton,
Sheffield***, Slough, Solihull, Somerset*, Southampton*****,
Southend-on-Sea, South Gloucestershire****, South Tyneside,
Southwark**, Staffordshire*, St. Helens, Stockport, Stockton-on-Tees,
Stoke-on-Trent*****, Suffolk*, Sunderland***, Surrey*, Sutton**, Swindon,
Tameside, Telford and Wrekin****, Thurrock, Torbay, Tower Hamlets**,
Trafford, Wakefield***, Walsall, Waltham Forest**, Wandsworth**,
Warrington, Warwickshire*, West Berkshire****, Westminster***, West
Sussex*, Wigan, Wiltshire*, Windsor and Maidenhead******, Wirral,
Wokingham****, Wolverhampton, Worcestershire*, York*****; Northern Ireland
- 24 districts, 2 cities*, 6 counties**; Antrim, County Antrim**,
Ards, Armagh, County Armagh**, Ballymena, Ballymoney, Banbridge,
Belfast*, Carrickfergus, Castlereagh, Coleraine, Cookstown, Craigavon,
Down, County Down**, Dungannon, Fermanagh, County Fermanagh**, Larne,
Limavady, Lisburn, County Londonderry**, Derry*, Magherafelt, Moyle,
Newry and Mourne, Newtownabbey, North Down, Omagh, Strabane, County
Tyrone**; Scotland - 32 council areas; Aberdeen City, Aberdeenshire,
Angus, Argyll and Bute, The Scottish Borders, Clackmannanshire, Dumfries
and Galloway, Dundee City, East Ayrshire, East Dunbartonshire, East
Lothian, East Renfrewshire, City of Edinburgh, Falkirk, Fife, Glasgow
City, Highland, Inverclyde, Midlothian, Moray, North Ayrshire, North
Lanarkshire, Orkney Islands, Perth and Kinross, Renfrewshire, Shetland
Islands, South Ayrshire, South Lanarkshire, Stirling, West Dunbartonshire,
Eilean Siar (Western Isles), West Lothian; Wales - 11 county boroughs,
9 counties*, 2 cities and counties**; Isle of Anglesey*, Blaenau Gwent,
Bridgend, Caerphilly, Cardiff**, Ceredigion*, Carmarthenshire*, Conwy,
Denbighshire*, Flintshire*, Gwynedd, Merthyr Tydfil, Monmouthshire*,
Neath Port Talbot, Newport, Pembrokeshire*, Powys*, Rhondda Cynon Taff,
Swansea**, Torfaen, The Vale of Glamorgan*, Wrexham
Dependent areas: Anguilla, Bermuda, British Indian Ocean Territory,
British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Falkland Islands, Gibraltar,
Guernsey, Jersey, Isle of Man, Montserrat, Pitcairn Islands, Saint Helena,
South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, Turks and Caicos Islands
Independence: England has existed as a unified entity since the 10th
century; the union between England and Wales was enacted under the
Statute of Rhuddlan in 1284; in the Act of Union of 1707, England and
Scotland agreed to permanent union as Great Britain; the legislative
union of Great Britain and Ireland was implemented in 1801, with the
adoption of the name the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland;
the Anglo-Irish treaty of 1921 formalized a partition of Ireland; six
northern Irish counties remained part of the United Kingdom as Northern
Ireland and the current name of the country, the United Kingdom of Great
Britain and Northern Ireland, was adopted in 1927
National holiday: Birthday of Queen ELIZABETH II, celebrated on the
second Saturday in June (1926)
Constitution: unwritten; partly statutes, partly common law and practice
Legal system: common law tradition with early Roman and modern
continental influences; no judicial review of Acts of Parliament; accepts
compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations; British courts and
legislation are increasingly subject to review by European Union courts
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal
Executive branch: chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February
1952); Heir Apparent Prince CHARLES (son of the queen, born 14 November
1948) head of government: Prime Minister Anthony (Tony) BLAIR (since 2
May 1997)
Cabinet of Ministers appointed by the prime minister elections: majority
party in the House of Commons (assuming there is no majority
party, a prime minister would have a majority coalition or at least a
coalition that was not rejected by the majority)
Legislative branch: bicameral Parliament comprised of House of Lords
(consists of approximately 500 life peers, 92 hereditary peers and 26
clergy) and House of Commons (659 seats; members are elected by popular
vote to serve five-year terms unless the House is dissolved earlier)
elections: elections); House of Commons - last held 7 June 2001 (next
to be held by NA May 2006) election results: House of Commons - percent
of vote by party - Labor 42.1%, Conservative and Unionist 32.7%, Liberal
Democrats 18.8%, other 6.4%; seats by party - Labor 412, Conservative
and Unionist 166, Liberal Democrat 52, other 29; note - seating as of 15
February 2002: 1998 elections were held for a Northern Ireland Parliament
(because of unresolved disputes among existing parties, the transfer of
power from London to Northern Ireland came only at the end of 1999 and
was twice rescinded before reinstatement in November 2001); in 1999 there
were elections for a new Scottish Parliament and a new Welsh Assembly
Judicial branch: House of Lords (highest court of appeal; several
Lords of Appeal in Ordinary are appointed by the monarch for life);
Supreme Courts of England, Wales, and Northern Ireland (comprising the
Courts of Appeal, the High Courts of Justice, and the Crown Courts);
Scotland's Court of Session and Court of the Justiciary
Political parties and leaders: Conservative and Unionist Party [Iain
Duncan SMITH]; Democratic Unionist Party (Northern Ireland) [Rev. Ian
PAISLEY]; Labor Party [Anthony (Tony) BLAIR]; Liberal Democrats [Charles
KENNEDY]; Party of Wales (Plaid Cymru) [Ieuan Wyn JONES]; Scottish
National Party or SNP [John SWINNEY]; Sinn Fein (Northern Ireland) [Gerry
ADAMS]; Social Democratic and Labor Party or SDLP (Northern Ireland)
[Mark DURKAN]; Ulster Unionist Party (Northern Ireland) [David TRIMBLE]
Political pressure groups and leaders: Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament;
Confederation of British Industry; National Farmers' Union; Trades
Union Congress
International organization participation: AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group,
BIS, C, CCC, CDB, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECA (associate), ECE, ECLAC, EIB,
ESA, ESCAP, EU, FAO, G- 5, G- 7, G- 8, G-10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC,
ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol,
IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MONUC, NAM (guest), NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer),
OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, SPC, UN, UN Security Council, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD,
UNESCO, UNFICYP, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMOVIC, UNOMIG,
UNRWA, UNTAET, UNU, UPU, WCL, WEU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO, ZC
Diplomatic representation in the US: chief of mission: Ambassador
Sir Christopher J. R. MEYER chancery: 3100 Massachusetts Avenue NW,
Washington, DC 20008 FAX: [1] (202) 588-7870
Dallas, Denver, Miami, and Seattle consulate(s) general: and San
Francisco telephone: [1] (202) 588-6500
Diplomatic representation from the US: chief of mission: Ambassador
William S. FARISH embassy: 24/31 Grosvenor Square, London, W1A1AE
mailing address: PSC 801, Box 40, FPO AE 09498-4040 telephone: [44]
(0) 207499-9000 (switchboard) FAX: [44] (0) 207 629-8288 consulate(s)
general: Belfast, Edinburgh
Flag description: blue with the red cross of Saint George (patron saint
of England) edged in white superimposed on the diagonal red cross of
Saint Patrick (patron saint of Ireland) and which is superimposed on the
diagonal white cross of Saint Andrew (patron saint of Scotland); known
as the Union Flag or Union Jack; the design and colors (especially the
Blue Ensign) have been the basis for a number of other flags including
other Commonwealth countries and their constituent states or provinces,
as well as British overseas territories
Economy United Kingdom
Economy - overview: The UK, a leading trading power and financial center,
is one of the quartet of trillion dollar economies of Western Europe. Over
the past two decades the government has greatly reduced public ownership
and contained the growth of social welfare programs. Agriculture is
intensive, highly mechanized, and efficient by European standards,
producing about 60% of food needs with only 1% of the labor force.
The UK has large coal, natural gas, and oil reserves; primary energy
production accounts for 10% of GDP, one of the highest shares of
any industrial nation. Services, particularly banking, insurance, and
business services, account by far for the largest proportion of GDP while
industry continues to decline in importance. GDP growth slipped in 2001
as the global downturn, the high value of the pound, and the bursting
of the "new economy" bubble hurt manufacturing and exports. Still, the
economy is one of the strongest in Europe; inflation, interest rates,
and unemployment remain low, and the government expects growth of 2% to
2.5% in 2002. The relatively good economic performance has complicated
the BLAIR government's efforts to make a case for Britain to join the
European Economic and Monetary Union (EMU). The Prime Minister has
pledged to hold a public referendum if membership meets Chancellor of
the Exchequer BROWN's five economic "tests." Scheduled for assessment
by mid-2003, the tests will determine whether joining EMU would have a
positive effect on British investment, employment, and growth. Critics
point out, however, that the economy is thriving outside of EMU, and
they point to public opinion polls that continue to show a majority of
Britons opposed to the single currency.
GDP: purchasing power parity - $1.47 trillion (2001 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: 2.4% (2001 est.)
GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $24,700 (2001 est.)
GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 1.7% industry: 24.9% services:
73.4% (1999)
Population below poverty line: 17%
Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: 2.6%
highest 10%: 27.3% (1991)
Distribution of family income - Gini index: 36.1 (1991)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 1.8% (2001 est.)
Labor force: 29.7 million (2001)
Labor force - by occupation: agriculture 1%, industry 25%, services 74%
(1999)
Unemployment rate: 5.1% (2001 est.)
Budget: revenues: $565 billion expenditures: $540 billion, including
capital expenditures of $NA (FY01)
Industries: machine tools, electric power equipment, automation
equipment, railroad equipment, shipbuilding, aircraft, motor vehicles
and parts, electronics and communications equipment, metals, chemicals,
coal, petroleum, paper and paper products, food processing, textiles,
clothing, and other consumer goods
Industrial production growth rate: -1.6% (2001 est.)
Electricity - production: 355.761 billion kWh (2000)
Electricity - production by source: fossil fuel: 73.26% hydro: 1.46%
other: 2.31% (2000) nuclear: 22.97%
Electricity - consumption: 345.032 billion kWh (2000)
Electricity - exports: 134 million kWh (2000)
Electricity - imports: 14.308 billion kWh (2000)
Agriculture - products: cereals, oilseed, potatoes, vegetables; cattle,
sheep, poultry; fish
Exports: $287 billion (f.o.b., 2001)
Exports - commodities: manufactured goods, fuels, chemicals; food,
beverages, tobacco
Exports - partners: EU 54% (Germany 11%, France 9%, Netherlands 7%,
Ireland 7%), US 15% (2000)
Imports: $337 billion (c.i.f., 2001)
Imports - commodities: manufactured goods, machinery, fuels; foodstuffs
Imports - partners: EU 48% (Germany 11%, France 7%, Netherlands 6%),
US 13%, Japan 5% (2000)
Debt - external: $NA
Economic aid - donor: ODA, $4.5 billion (2000)
Currency: British pound (GBP)
Currency code: GBP
Exchange rates: British pounds per US dollar - 0.6981 (January 2002),
0.6944 (2001), 0.6596 (2000), 0.6180 (1999), 0.6037 (1998), 0.6106 (1997)
Fiscal year: 1 April - 31 March
Communications United Kingdom
Telephones - main lines in use: 34.878 million (1997)
Telephones - mobile cellular: 13 million (yearend 1998)
Telephone system: general assessment: technologically advanced domestic
and international system domestic: equal mix of buried cables, microwave
radio relay, and fiber-optic systems international: 40 coaxial submarine
cables; satellite earth stations - 10 Intelsat (7 Atlantic Ocean and
3 Indian Ocean), 1 Inmarsat (Atlantic Ocean region), and 1 Eutelsat;
at least 8 large international switching centers
Radio broadcast stations: AM 219, FM 431, shortwave 3 (1998)
Radios: 84.5 million (1997)
Television broadcast stations: 228 (plus 3,523 repeaters) (1995)
Televisions: 30.5 million (1997)
Internet country code: .uk
Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 245 (2000)
Internet users: 33 million (2001)
Transportation United Kingdom
Railways: total: 16,878 km standard gauge: 16,536 km 1.435-m gauge
(4,928 km electrified; 12,591 km double- or multiple-tracked) broad
gauge: 342 km 1.600-m gauge (190 km double-tracked) note: all 1.600-m
gauge track is in common carrier service in Northern Ireland (1996)
Highways: total: 371,603 km paved: 371,603 km (including 3,303 km of
expressways) unpaved: 0 km (1998 est.)
Waterways: 3,200 km
Pipelines: crude oil (almost all insignificant) 933 km; petroleum
products 2,993 km; natural gas 12,800 km
Ports and harbors: Aberdeen, Belfast, Bristol, Cardiff, Dover, Falmouth,
Felixstowe, Glasgow, Grangemouth, Hull, Leith, Liverpool, London,
Manchester, Peterhead, Plymouth, Portsmouth, Scapa Flow, Southampton,
Sullom Voe, Tees, Tyne
Merchant marine: total: 212 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 4,308,232
GRT/4,171,757 DWT ships by type: bulk 7, cargo 32, chemical tanker 13,
combination ore/oil 1, container 53, liquefied gas 3, passenger 13,
passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 48, refrigerated cargo 4, roll on/roll
off 26, short-sea passenger 10, specialized tanker 1 note: includes some
foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Bermuda 1,
Cyprus 1, Denmark 21, Germany 6, Greece 3, Hong Kong 4, Italy 1, Monaco 4,
Netherlands 1, Norway 9, Russia 1, South Africa 2, Sweden 11, Taiwan 2,
United States 5 (2002 est.)
Airports: 470 (2001)
Airports - with paved runways: total: 332 over 3,047 m: 8 2,438 to 3,047
m: 33 914 to 1,523 m: 84 under 914 m: 57 (2001) 1,524 to 2,437 m: 150
Airports - with unpaved runways: total: 138 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to
1,523 m: 23 under 914 m: 114 (2001)
Heliports: 13 (2001)
Military United Kingdom
Military branches: Army, Royal Navy (including Royal Marines), Royal
Air Force
Military manpower - availability: males age 15-49: 14,632,418 (2002 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service: males age 15-49: 12,151,734
(2002 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure: $31.7 billion (2002)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP: 2.32% (2002)
Transnational Issues United Kingdom
Disputes - international: Spain and UK are discussing "total shared
sovereignty" over Gibraltar, subject to a constitutional referendum
by Gibraltarians, who have largely expressed opposition to any form of
cession to Spain; Mauritius and Seychelles claim the Chagos Archipelago
(British Indian Ocean Territory) and its former inhabitants, who
reside chiefly in Mauritius, but in 2001 were granted UK citizenship
and the right to repatriation since eviction in 1965; Argentina claims
the Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas) and South Georgia and the South
Sandwich Islands; Rockall continental shelf dispute involving Denmark and
Iceland; territorial claim in Antarctica (British Antarctic Territory)
overlaps Argentine claim and partially overlaps Chilean claim; disputes
with Iceland, Denmark, and Ireland over the Faroe Islands continental
shelf boundary outside 200 NM
Illicit drugs: gateway country for Latin American cocaine entering
the European market; major consumer of synthetic drugs, producer of
limited amounts of synthetic drugs and synthetic precursor chemicals;
major consumer of Southwest Asian heroin; money-laundering center
This page was last updated on 1 January 2002
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Ukraine
Introduction
Ukraine
Background: Richly endowed in natural resources, Ukraine has been fought
over and subjugated for centuries; its 20th-century struggle for liberty
is not yet complete. A short-lived independence from Russia (1917-1920)
was followed by brutal Soviet rule that engineered two artificial famines
(1921-22 and 1932-33) in which over 8 million died, and World War II, in
which German and Soviet armies were responsible for some 7 million more
deaths. Although independence was attained in 1991 with the dissolution of
the USSR, true freedom remains elusive as many of the former Soviet elite
remain entrenched, stalling efforts at economic reform, privatization,
and civil liberties.
Geography Ukraine
Location: Eastern Europe, bordering the Black Sea, between Poland
and Russia
Geographic coordinates: 49 00 N, 32 00 E
Map references: Asia, Europe
Area: total: 603,700 sq km water: 0 sq km land: 603,700 sq km
Area - comparative: slightly smaller than Texas
Land boundaries: total: 4,663 km border countries: Belarus 891 km,
Hungary 103 km, Moldova 939 km, Poland 526 km, Romania (south) 169 km,
Romania (west) 362 km, Russia 1,576 km, Slovakia 97 km
Coastline: 2,782 km
Maritime claims: continental shelf: 200-m or to the depth of exploitation
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM
Climate: 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
Terrain: most of Ukraine consists of fertile plains (steppes) and
plateaus, mountains being found only in the west (the Carpathians),
and in the Crimean Peninsula in the extreme south
Elevation extremes: lowest point: Black Sea 0 m highest point: Hora
Hoverla 2,061 m
Natural resources: iron ore, coal, manganese, natural gas, oil, salt,
sulfur, graphite, titanium, magnesium, kaolin, nickel, mercury, timber,
arable land
Land use: arable land: 57% permanent crops: 2% other: 41% (1998 est.)
Irrigated land: 24,540 sq km (1998 est.)
Natural hazards: NA
Environment - 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
Environment - international agreements: party to: Air Pollution, Air
Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Antarctic-Marine
Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change,
Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of
the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants,
Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds,
Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol
Geography - note: strategic position at the crossroads between Europe
and Asia; second-largest country in Europe
People Ukraine
Population: 48,396,470 (July 2002 est.)
Age structure: 0-14 years: 16.8% (male 4,147,344; female 3,970,343) 15-64
years: 68.7% (male 15,881,821; female 17,366,172) 65 years and over: 14.5%
(male 2,341,885; female 4,688,905) (2002 est.)
Population growth rate: -0.72% (2002 est.)
Birth rate: 9.59 births/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Death rate: 16.4 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Net migration rate: -0.42 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Sex ratio: at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04
male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.91 male(s)/female 65 years and over:
0.5 male(s)/female total population: 0.86 male(s)/female (2002 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 21.14 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.)
Life expectancy at birth: 72.06 years (2002 est.) male: Total fertility
rate: 1.32 children born/woman (2002 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: 0.96% (1999 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: 240,000 (1999 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths: 4,000 (1999 est.)
Nationality: noun: Ukrainian(s) adjective: Ukrainian
Ethnic groups: Ukrainian 73%, Russian 22%, Jewish 1%, other 4%
Religions: Ukrainian Orthodox - Moscow Patriarchate, Ukrainian Orthodox -
Kiev Patriarchate, Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox, Ukrainian Catholic
(Uniate), Protestant, Jewish
Languages: Ukrainian, Russian, Romanian, Polish, Hungarian
Literacy: definition: age 15 and over can read and write total
population: 98% male: 100% female: 97% (1989 est.)
Government Ukraine
Country name: conventional long form: none conventional short form:
Ukraine local long form: none former: Ukrainian National Republic,
Ukrainian State, Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic local short form:
Ukrayina
Government type: republic
Capital: Kiev (Kyyiv)
Administrative divisions: 24 oblasti (singular - oblast'), 1
autonomous republic* (avtomnaya respublika), and 2 municipalities
(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), Avtonomna Respublika
Krym* (Simferopol'), Rivnens'ka (Rivne), Sevastopol'**, Sums'ka (Sumy),
Ternopil's'ka (Ternopil'), Vinnyts'ka (Vinnytsya), Volyns'ka (Luts'k),
Zakarpats'ka (Uzhhorod), Zaporiz'ka (Zaporizhzhya), Zhytomyrs'ka
(Zhytomyr); note - when using a place name with an adjectival ending
's'ka' or 'z'ka,' the word Oblast' should be added to the place name note:
oblasts have the administrative center name following in parentheses
Independence: 24 August 1991 (from Soviet Union)
National holiday: Independence Day, 24 August (1991)
Constitution: adopted 28 June 1996
Legal system: based on civil law system; judicial review of legislative
acts
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal