Ukrainian (official) 67%, Russian 24%, other 9% (includes small Romanian-, Polish-, and Hungarian-speaking minorities)
Exports
ferrous and nonferrous metals, fuel and petroleum products, chemicals, machinery and transport equipment, food products
External Debt
$123,700,000,000 US
Exchange Rate
hryvnia (UAH) per US dollar - 4.9523 (2008 est.), 5.05 (2007), 5.05 (2006), 5.1247 (2005), 5.3192 (2004)
Military Budget as percentage of GDP
1.400%
Beijing Olympics Medal Count
0
27
Location
Eastern Africa, bordering the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean, east of Ethiopia
Eastern Europe, bordering the Black Sea, between Poland, Romania, and Moldova in the west and Russia in the east
Area
637,657 km sq
603,550 km sq
Coastline
3,025 km
2,782 km
Climate
principally desert; northeast monsoon (December to February), moderate temperatures in north and hot in south; southwest monsoon (May to October), torrid in the north and hot in the south, irregular rainfall, hot and humid periods (tangambili) between monsoons
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
