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Compare Ukraine (2005) - Israel (2002)

Compare Ukraine (2005) z Israel (2002)

 Ukraine (2005)Israel (2002)
 UkraineIsrael
Administrative divisions 24 provinces (oblasti, singular - oblast'), 1 autonomous republic* (avtonomna respublika), and 2 municipalities (mista, singular - misto) with oblast status**; Cherkasy, Chernihiv, Chernivtsi, Crimea or Avtonomna Respublika Krym* (Simferopol'), Dnipropetrovs'k, Donets'k, Ivano-Frankivs'k, Kharkiv, Kherson, Khmel'nyts'kyy, Kirovohrad, Kiev (Kyyiv)**, Kyyiv, Luhans'k, L'viv, Mykolayiv, Odesa, Poltava, Rivne, Sevastopol'**, Sumy, Ternopil', Vinnytsya, Volyn' (Luts'k), Zakarpattya (Uzhhorod), Zaporizhzhya, Zhytomyr


note: administrative divisions have the same names as their administrative centers (exceptions have the administrative center name following in parentheses)
6 districts (mehozot, singular - mehoz); Central, Haifa, Jerusalem, Northern, Southern, Tel Aviv
Age structure 0-14 years: 15.6% (male 3,783,725/female 3,619,754)


15-64 years: 68.8% (male 15,619,989/female 16,992,628)


65 years and over: 15.6% (male 2,497,851/female 4,911,389) (2005 est.)
0-14 years: 27.1% (male 837,491; female 798,695)


15-64 years: 63% (male 1,905,677; female 1,889,525)


65 years and over: 9.9% (male 257,066; female 341,075) (2002 est.)
Agriculture - products grain, sugar beets, sunflower seeds, vegetables; beef, milk citrus, vegetables, cotton; beef, poultry, dairy products
Airports 656 (2004 est.) 54 (2001)
Airports - with paved runways total: 174


over 3,047 m: 13


2,438 to 3,047 m: 57


1,524 to 2,437 m: 30


914 to 1,523 m: 4


under 914 m: 70 (2004 est.)
total: 28


over 3,047 m: 2


2,438 to 3,047 m: 4


1,524 to 2,437 m: 7


914 to 1,523 m: 11


under 914 m: 4 (2002)
Airports - with unpaved runways total: 482


over 3,047 m: 3


2,438 to 3,047 m: 3


1,524 to 2,437 m: 14


914 to 1,523 m: 34


under 914 m: 428 (2004 est.)
total: 24


1,524 to 2,437 m: 1


914 to 1,523 m: 3


under 914 m: 20 (2002)
Area total: 603,700 sq km


land: 603,700 sq km


water: 0 sq km
total: 20,770 sq km


land: 20,330 sq km


water: 440 sq km
Area - comparative slightly smaller than Texas slightly smaller than New Jersey
Background Ukraine was the center of the first Slavic state, Kievan Rus, which during the 10th and 11th centuries was the largest and most powerful state in Europe. Weakened by internecine quarrels and Mongol invasions, Kievan Rus was incorporated into the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and eventually into the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. The cultural and religious legacy of Kievan Rus laid the foundation for Ukrainian nationalism through subsequent centuries. A new Ukrainian state, the Cossack Hetmanate, was established during the mid-17th century after an uprising against the Poles. Despite continuous Muscovite pressure, the Hetmanate managed to remain autonomous for well over 100 years. During the latter part of the 18th century, most Ukrainian ethnographic territory was absorbed by the Russian Empire. Following the collapse of czarist Russia in 1917, Ukraine was able to bring about a short-lived period of independence (1917-20), but was reconquered and forced to endure a brutal Soviet rule that engineered two artificial famines (1921-22 and 1932-33) in which over 8 million died. In World War II, German and Soviet armies were responsible for some 7 to 8 million more deaths. Although final independence for Ukraine was achieved in 1991 with the dissolution of the USSR, democracy remained elusive as the legacy of state control and endemic corruption stalled efforts at economic reform, privatization, and civil liberties. A peaceful mass protest "Orange Revolution" in the closing months of 2004 forced the authorities to overturn a rigged presidential election and to allow a new internationally monitored vote that swept into power a reformist slate under Viktor YUSHCHENKO. The new government presents its citizens with hope that the country may at last attain true freedom and prosperity. Following World War II, the British withdrew from their mandate of Palestine, and the UN partitioned the area into Arab and Jewish states, an arrangement rejected by the Arabs. Subsequently, the Israelis defeated the Arabs in a series of wars without ending the deep tensions between the two sides. The territories occupied by Israel since the 1967 war are not included in the Israel country profile, unless otherwise noted. On 25 April 1982, Israel withdrew from the Sinai pursuant to the 1979 Israel-Egypt Peace Treaty. Outstanding territorial and other disputes with Jordan were resolved in the 26 October 1994 Israel-Jordan Treaty of Peace. In addition, on 25 May 2000, Israel withdrew unilaterally from southern Lebanon, which it had occupied since 1982. In keeping with the framework established at the Madrid Conference in October 1991, bilateral negotiations were conducted between Israel and Palestinian representatives (from the Israeli-occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip) and Syria, to achieve a permanent settlement. But progress toward a permanent status agreement has been undermined by the outbreak of Palestinian-Israeli violence since September 2000.
Birth rate 10.49 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) 18.91 births/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Budget revenues: $13.57 billion


expenditures: $12.26 billion, including capital expenditures of NA; note - these estimates probably do not include the government's doubling of pensions in September of 2004 (2004 est.)
revenues: $40 billion


expenditures: $42.4 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.)
Capital Kiev (Kyyiv) Jerusalem; note - Israel proclaimed Jerusalem as its capital in 1950, but the US, like nearly all other countries, maintains its Embassy in Tel Aviv
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 temperate; hot and dry in southern and eastern desert areas
Coastline 2,782 km 273 km
Constitution adopted 28 June 1996 no formal constitution; some of the functions of a constitution are filled by the Declaration of Establishment (1948), the Basic Laws of the parliament (Knesset), and the Israeli citizenship law
Country name conventional long form: none


conventional short form: Ukraine


local long form: none


local short form: Ukrayina


former: Ukrainian National Republic, Ukrainian State, Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic
conventional long form: State of Israel


conventional short form: Israel


local long form: Medinat Yisra'el


local short form: Yisra'el
Currency - new Israeli shekel (ILS)
Death rate 16.42 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) 6.21 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Debt - external $16.37 billion (2004 est.) $42.8 billion (2001 est.)
Diplomatic representation from the US chief of mission: Ambassador John E. HERBST


embassy: 10 Yuriia Kotsiubynskoho Street, 04053 Kiev


mailing address: 5850 Kiev Place, Washington, DC 20521-5850


telephone: [380] (44) 490-4000


FAX: [380] (44) 490-4085
chief of mission: Ambassador Daniel C. KURTZER


embassy: 71 Hayarkon Street, Tel Aviv


mailing address: PSC 98, Box 29, APO AE 09830


telephone: [972] (3) 519-7457/7369/7454/7458/7453


FAX: [972] (3) 517-4390


consulate(s) general: Jerusalem; note - an independent US mission, established in 1928, whose members are not accredited to a foreign government
Diplomatic representation in the US chief of mission: Ambassador Mykhailo B. REZNIK


chancery: 3350 M Street NW, Washington, DC 20007


telephone: [1] (202) 349-2920


FAX: [1] (202) 333-0817


consulate(s) general: Chicago, New York, San Francisco
chief of mission: Ambassador Daniel AYALON


chancery: 3514 International Drive NW, Washington, DC 20008


telephone: [1] (202) 364-5500


FAX: [1] (202) 364-3607


consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Philadelphia, and San Francisco
Disputes - international 1997 boundary treaty with Belarus remains un-ratified due to unresolved financial claims, stalling demarcation and reducing border security; delimitation of land boundary with Russia is complete but the parties have agreed to defer demarcation; maritime boundary through the Sea of Azov and Kerch Strait remains unresolved despite a December 2003 framework agreement and on-going expert-level discussions; Moldova and Ukraine have established joint customs posts to monitor transit through Moldova's break-away Transnistria Region which remains under OSCE supervision; Ukraine and Romania have taken their dispute over Ukrainian-administered Zmiyinyy (Snake) Island and Black Sea maritime boundary to the ICJ for adjudication; Romania opposes Ukraine's reopening of a navigation canal from the Danube border through the Ukraine to the Black Sea West Bank and Gaza Strip are Israeli-occupied with current status subject to the Israeli-Palestinian Interim Agreement - permanent status to be determined through further negotiation; Golan Heights is Israeli-occupied (Lebanon claims the Shab'a Farms area of Golan Heights)
Economic aid - recipient $637.7 million (1995); IMF Extended Funds Facility $2.2 billion (1998) NA
Economy - overview 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 the unique equipment (for example, large diameter pipes) and raw materials to industrial and mining sites (vertical drilling apparatus) in other regions of the former USSR. Ukraine depends on imports of energy, especially natural gas, to meet some 85% of its annual energy requirements. Shortly after independence in December 1991, 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. Output by 1999 had fallen to less than 40% of the 1991 level. Loose monetary policies pushed inflation to hyperinflationary levels in late 1993. Ukraine's dependence on Russia for energy supplies and the lack of significant structural reform have made the Ukrainian economy vulnerable to external shocks. Ukrainian government officials have taken some steps to reform the country's Byzantine tax code, such as the implementation of lower tax rates aimed at bringing more economic activity out of Ukraine's large shadow economy, but more improvements are needed, including closing tax loopholes and eliminating tax privileges and exemptions. Reforms in the more politically sensitive areas of structural reform and land privatization are still lagging. Outside institutions - particularly the IMF - have encouraged Ukraine to quicken the pace and scope of reforms. GDP in 2000 showed strong export-based growth of 6% - the first growth since independence - and industrial production grew 12.9%. The economy continued to expand in 2001 as real GDP rose 9% and industrial output grew by over 14%. Growth of 4.6% in 2002 was more moderate, in part a reflection of faltering growth in the developed world. In general, growth has been undergirded by strong domestic demand, low inflation, and solid consumer and investor confidence. Growth was a sturdy 9.3% in 2003 and a remarkable 12% in 2004, despite a loss of momentum in needed economic reforms. Israel has a technologically advanced market economy with substantial government participation. It depends on imports of crude oil, grains, raw materials, and military equipment. Despite limited natural resources, Israel has intensively developed its agricultural and industrial sectors over the past 20 years. Israel is largely self-sufficient in food production except for grains. Cut diamonds, high-technology equipment, and agricultural products (fruits and vegetables) are the leading exports. Israel usually posts sizable current account deficits, which are covered by large transfer payments from abroad and by foreign loans. Roughly half of the government's external debt is owed to the US, which is its major source of economic and military aid. The influx of Jewish immigrants from the former USSR during the period 1989-99 coupled with the opening of new markets at the end of the Cold War, energized Israel's economy, which grew rapidly in the early 1990s. But growth began moderating in 1996 when the government imposed tighter fiscal and monetary policies and the immigration bonus petered out. Growth was a strong 6.4% in 2000. But the bitter Israeli-Palestinian conflict, increasingly the declines in the high-technology and tourist sectors, and fiscal austerity measures in the face of growing inflation have led to declines in GDP in 2001 and 2002.
Electricity - consumption 132 billion kWh (2003) 34.897 billion kWh (2000)
Electricity - exports 1.2 billion kWh (2002) 1.27 billion kWh (2000)
Electricity - imports 0 kWh (2002) 12 million kWh (2000)
Electricity - production 180 billion kWh (2003) 38.876 billion kWh (2000)
Electricity - production by source - fossil fuel: 100%


hydro: 0%


nuclear: 0%


other: 0% (2000)
Elevation extremes lowest point: Black Sea 0 m


highest point: Hora Hoverla 2,061 m
lowest point: Dead Sea -408 m


highest point: Har Meron 1,208 m
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 limited arable land and natural fresh water resources pose serious constraints; desertification; air pollution from industrial and vehicle emissions; groundwater pollution from industrial and domestic waste, chemical fertilizers, and pesticides
Environment - international agreements party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulfur 85, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, 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-Sulfur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands


signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Marine Life Conservation
Ethnic groups Ukrainian 77.8%, Russian 17.3%, Belarusian 0.6%, Moldovan 0.5%, Crimean Tatar 0.5%, Bulgarian 0.4%, Hungarian 0.3%, Romanian 0.3%, Polish 0.3%, Jewish 0.2%, other 1.8% (2001 census) Jewish 80.1% (Europe/America-born 32.1%, Israel-born 20.8%, Africa-born 14.6%, Asia-born 12.6%), non-Jewish 19.9% (mostly Arab) (1996 est.)
Exchange rates hryvnia per US dollar - 5.3192 (2004), 5.3327 (2003), 5.3266 (2002), 5.3722 (2001), 5.4402 (2000) new Israeli shekels per US dollar - 4.2757 (December 2001), 4.2057 (2001), 4.0773 (2000), 4.1397 (1999), 3.8001 (1998), 3.4494 (1997)
Executive branch chief of state: President Viktor A. YUSHCHENKO (since 23 January 2005)


head of government: Prime Minister Yuriy YEKHANUROV (since 22 September 2005); First Deputy Prime Minister - Stanislav STASHEVSKYY (since 27 September 2005)


cabinet: Cabinet of Ministers appointed by the president and approved by the Supreme Council


note: there is also a National Security and Defense Council or NSDC originally created in 1992 as the National Security Council, but significantly revamped and strengthened under former-President KUCHMA; the NSDC staff is tasked with developing national security policy on domestic and international matters and advising the president; a Presidential Administration that helps draft presidential edicts and provides policy support to the president; and a Council of Regions that serves as an advisory body


elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; note - a special repeat runoff presidential election between Viktor YUSHCHENKO and Viktor YANUKOVYCH took place on 26 December 2004 after the earlier 21 November 2004 contest - won by Mr. YANUKOVYCH - was invalidated by the Ukrainian Supreme Court because of widespread and significant violations; prime minister and deputy prime ministers appointed by the president and approved by the Supreme Council


election results: Viktor YUSHCHENKO elected president; percent of vote - Viktor YUSHCHENKO 51.99%, Viktor YANUKOVYCH 44.2%
chief of state: President Moshe KATSAV (since 31 July 2000)


head of government: Prime Minister Ariel SHARON (since 7 March 2001)


cabinet: Cabinet selected by prime minister and approved by the Knesset


elections: president elected by the Knesset for a seven-year term; election last held 31 July 2000 (next to be held NA 2007); following legislative elections, the president assigns a Knesset member - traditionally the leader of the largest party - the task of forming a governing coalition; election last held 28 January 2003 (next to be held fall of 2007)


election results: Moshe KATSAV elected president by the 120-member Knesset with a total of 60 votes, other candidate, Shimon PERES, received 57 votes (there were three abstentions); Ariel SHARON continues as prime minister after Likud Party victory in January 2003 Knesset elections; Likud won 38 seats and then formed coalition government with Shinui, the National Religious Party, and the National Union
Exports NA $28 billion f.o.b. (2002 est.)
Exports - commodities ferrous and nonferrous metals, fuel and petroleum products, chemicals, machinery and transport equipment, food products machinery and equipment, software, cut diamonds, agricultural products, chemicals, textiles and apparel
Exports - partners Russia 18%, Germany 5.8%, Turkey 5.7%, Italy 5%, US 4.6% (2004) US 42.8%, Benelux 7.4%, Hong Kong 6.8%, Germany 4.8%, UK 4.8%, Japan 3.2% (2001)
Fiscal year calendar year calendar year
Flag description two equal horizontal bands of azure (top) and golden yellow represent grainfields under a blue sky white with a blue hexagram (six-pointed linear star) known as the Magen David (Shield of David) centered between two equal horizontal blue bands near the top and bottom edges of the flag
GDP - purchasing power parity - $122 billion (2002 est.)
GDP - composition by sector agriculture: 18%


industry: 45.1%


services: 36.9% (2004 est.)
agriculture: 3%


industry: 30%


services: 67% (2001 est.)
GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - $6,300 (2004 est.) purchasing power parity - $19,000 (2002 est.)
GDP - real growth rate 12% (2004 est.) -1.1% (2002 est.)
Geographic coordinates 49 00 N, 32 00 E 31 30 N, 34 45 E
Geography - note strategic position at the crossroads between Europe and Asia; second-largest country in Europe there are 242 Israeli settlements and civilian land use sites in the West Bank, 42 in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, 25 in the Gaza Strip, and 29 in East Jerusalem (February 2002 est.); Sea of Galilee is an important freshwater source
Heliports 8 (2004 est.) 3 (2002)
Highways total: 169,679 km


paved: 164,249 km


unpaved: 5,430 km (2002)
total: 15,965 km


paved: 15,965 km (including 56 km of expressways)


unpaved: 0 km (1998 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%: 3.7%


highest 10%: 23.2% (1999)
lowest 10%: 2%


highest 10%: 28% (1992) (1997)
Illicit drugs limited cultivation of cannabis and opium poppy, mostly for CIS consumption; some synthetic drug production for export to the West; limited government eradication program; used as transshipment point for opiates and other illicit drugs from Africa, Latin America, and Turkey to Europe and Russia; Ukraine has improved anti-money-laundering controls, resulting in its removal from the Financial Action Task Force's (FATF's) Noncooperative Countries and Territories List in February 2004; Ukraine's anti-money-laundering regime continues to be monitored by FATF increasingly concerned about cocaine and heroin abuse; drugs arrive in country from Lebanon and increasingly Jordan
Imports NA $30.8 billion f.o.b. (2002 est.)
Imports - commodities energy, machinery and equipment, chemicals raw materials, military equipment, investment goods, rough diamonds, fuels, consumer goods
Imports - partners Russia 41.8%, Germany 9.6%, Turkmenistan 6.7% (2004) US 23.5%, Benelux 10.2%, Germany 7.9%, uk 6.7%, Switzerland 6.0%, Italy 5.2% (2001)
Independence 24 August 1991 (from the Soviet Union) 14 May 1948 (from League of Nations mandate under British administration)
Industrial production growth rate 16.5% (2004 est.) -1.5% (2002 est.)
Industries coal, electric power, ferrous and nonferrous metals, machinery and transport equipment, chemicals, food processing (especially sugar) high-technology projects (including aviation, communications, computer-aided design and manufactures, medical electronics), wood and paper products, potash and phosphates, food, beverages, and tobacco, caustic soda, cement, diamond cutting
Infant mortality rate total: 20.34 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 21.55 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 19.07 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)
7.55 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 12% (2004 est.) 5.7% (2002 est.)
International organization participation BSEC, CE, CEI, CIS, EAPC, EBRD, FAO, GUUAM, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MIGA, MONUC, NAM (observer), NSG, OAS (observer), OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNMEE, UNMIK, UNMIL, UNMOVIC, UNOMIG, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO (observer), ZC BSEC (observer), CCC, CE (observer), CERN (observer), EBRD, ECE, FAO, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS (associate), ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, OAS (observer), OPCW (signatory), OSCE (partner), PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) - 21 (2000)
Irrigated land 24,540 sq km (1998 est.) 1,990 sq km (1998 est.)
Judicial branch Supreme Court; Constitutional Court Supreme Court (justices appointed for life by the president)
Labor force 21.11 million (2004 est.) 2.4 million (2000 est.)
Labor force - by occupation agriculture 24%, industry 32%, services 44% (1996) public services 31%, manufacturing 20%, finance and business 13%, commerce 13%, construction 8%, personal and other services 6%, transport, storage, and communications 6%, agriculture, forestry, and fishing 3% (1996) (1996)
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
total: 1,017 km


border countries: Egypt 266 km, Gaza Strip 51 km, Jordan 238 km, Lebanon 79 km, Syria 76 km, West Bank 307 km
Land use arable land: 56.21%


permanent crops: 1.61%


other: 42.18% (2001)
arable land: 17.02%


permanent crops: 4.17%


other: 78.81% (1998 est.)
Languages Ukrainian (official) 67%, Russian 24%; small Romanian-, Polish-, and Hungarian-speaking minorities Hebrew (official), Arabic used officially for Arab minority, English most commonly used foreign language
Legal system based on civil law system; judicial review of legislative acts mixture of English common law, British Mandate regulations, and, in personal matters, Jewish, Christian, and Muslim legal systems; in December 1985, Israel informed the UN Secretariat that it would no longer accept compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Legislative branch unicameral Supreme Council or Verkhovna Rada (450 seats; under recent amendments to Ukraine's election law, the Rada's seats are allocated on a proportional basis to those parties that gain 3% or more of the national electoral vote; members serve five-year terms beginning with the next election in 2006)


elections: last held 31 March 2002 (next to be held March 2006)


election results: percent of vote by party/bloc - Our Ukraine 24%, CPU 20%, United Ukraine 12%, SPU 7%, Yuliya Tymoshenko Bloc 7%, United Social Democratic Party 6%, other 24%; seats by party/bloc - Our Ukraine 101, Regions of Ukraine 61, CPU 59, Working Ukraine 14, United Social Democratic Party 33, Agrarian Party 22, SPU 20, Yuliya Tymoshenko Bloc 19, United Ukraine 19, People's Democratic Party-Party of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs 16, Center Group 15, Democratic Initiatives 14, unaffiliated 57 (December 2004)


note: following the election, United Ukraine splintered into the Agrarian Party, European Choice, People's Choice, People's Democratic Party, Regions of Ukraine, and Working Ukraine-Industrialists and Entrepreneurs; these factions have since undergone a number of changes
unicameral Knesset or parliament (120 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)


elections: last held 27 January 2003 (next to be held NA 2007)


election results: percent of vote by party - Likud Party 29.4%, Labor 14.5%, Shinui 12.3%, Shas 8.2%, National Union 5.5%, Meretz 5.2%, United Torah Judaism 4.3%, National Religious Party 4.2%, Democratic Front for Peace and Equality 3.0%, One Nation 2.8%, National Democratic Alliance 2.3%, YBA 2.2%, United Arab List 2.1%, Green Leaf Party 1.2%, Herut 1.2%, other 1.6%; seats by party - Likud 38, Labor 19, Shinui 15, Shas 11, National Union 7, Meretz 6, National Religious Party 6, United Torah Judaism 5, Democratic Front for Peace and Equality 3, One Nation 3, National Democratic Alliance 3, YBA 2, United Arab List 2
Life expectancy at birth total population: 69.68 years


male: 64.39 years


female: 75.31 years (2005 est.)
total population: 78.86 years


male: 76.82 years


female: 81.01 years (2002 est.)
Literacy definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 99.7%


male: 99.8%


female: 99.6% (2003 est.)
definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 95%


male: 97%


female: 93% (1992 est.)
Location Eastern Europe, bordering the Black Sea, between Poland, Romania, and Moldova in the west and Russia in the east Middle East, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Egypt and Lebanon
Map references Asia, Europe Middle East
Maritime claims territorial sea: 12 nm


exclusive economic zone: 200 nm


continental shelf: 200-m or to the depth of exploitation
continental shelf: to depth of exploitation


territorial sea: 12 NM
Merchant marine total: 201 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 675,904 GRT/709,802 DWT


by type: bulk carrier 6, cargo 148, container 4, passenger 7, passenger/cargo 6, petroleum tanker 10, refrigerated cargo 11, roll on/roll off 7, specialized tanker 2


foreign-owned: 1 (Russia 1)


registered in other countries: 113 (2005)
total: 16 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 595,319 GRT/704,544 DWT


ships by type: container 15, roll on/roll off 1 (2002 est.)
Military branches Ground Forces, Naval Forces, Air Forces (Viyskovo-Povitryani Syly), Air Defense Forces (2002) Israel Defense Forces (IDF) (includes ground, naval, and air components with Air Defense Forces), Pioneer Fighting Youth (Nahal); note - historically there have been no separate Israeli military services
Military expenditures - dollar figure $617.9 million (FY02) $8.97 billion (FY02)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP 1.4% (FY02) 8.75% (FY02)
Military manpower - availability - males age 15-49: 1,542,835


females age 15-49: 1,499,830 (2002 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service - males age 15-49: 1,262,973


females age 15-49: 1,223,939 (2002 est.)
Military manpower - military age - 18 years of age (2002 est.)
Military manpower - reaching military age annually - males: 51,666


females: 49,207 (2002 est.)
National holiday Independence Day, 24 August (1991); the date of 22 January (1918), the day Ukraine first declared its independence (from Soviet Russia), is now celebrated as Unity Day Independence Day, 14 May (1948); note - Israel declared independence on 14 May 1948, but the Jewish calendar is lunar and the holiday may occur in April or May
Nationality noun: Ukrainian(s)


adjective: Ukrainian
noun: Israeli(s)


adjective: Israeli
Natural hazards NA sandstorms may occur during spring and summer; droughts; periodic earthquakes
Natural resources iron ore, coal, manganese, natural gas, oil, salt, sulfur, graphite, titanium, magnesium, kaolin, nickel, mercury, timber, arable land timber, potash, copper ore, natural gas, phosphate rock, magnesium bromide, clays, sand
Net migration rate -0.38 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) 2.11 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.)
People - note the sex trafficking of Ukrainian women is a serious problem that has only recently been addressed -
Pipelines gas 20,069 km; oil 4,540 km; refined products 4,169 km (2004) crude oil 708 km; petroleum products 290 km; natural gas 89 km
Political parties and leaders Agrarian Party [Volodymyr LYTVYN]; Communist Party of Ukraine or CPU [Petro SYMONENKO]; Democratic Initiatives [Stepan HAVRYSH]; Industrialists and Entrepreneurs [Anatoliy KINAKH]; Our Ukraine bloc (comprised of several parties the most prominent of which are Rukh, the Ukrainian People's Party, Reforms and Order, and Solidarity) [Viktor YUSHCHENKO]; People's Democratic Party or PDP [Valeriy PUSTOVOYTENKO]; Regions of Ukraine [Viktor YANUKOVYCH]; Socialist Party of Ukraine or SPU [Oleksandr MOROZ, chairman]; United Social Democratic Party [Viktor MEDVEDCHUK]; Working Ukraine [Serhiy TYHYPKO]; Yuliya Tymoshenko Bloc [Yuliya TYMOSHENKO]


note: as well as numerous smaller parties; United Ukraine and Center Group are not actual political parties, but rather deputy groups (factions not based on a party)
Center Party [Dan MERIDOR]; Democratic Front for Peace and Equality (Hadash) [Muhammad BARAKA]; Democratic Movement [Roman BRONFMAN]; Gesher [David LEVI]; Herut [michael KLEINER]; Labor Party [Binyamin BEN-ELIEZER]; Likud Party [Ariel SHARON]; Meimad [Rabbi Michael MELCHIOR]; Meretz [Yossi SARID]; National Democratic Alliance (Balad) [Azmi BISHARA]; National Religious Party [Yitzhak LEVY]; National Union [Benyamin ELON] (includes Tekuma and Moledet); One Israel [Ra'anan COHEN]; One Nation [Amir PERETZ]; Shas [Eliyahu YISHAI]; Shinui [Tommy LAPID]; United Arab List [Abd al-Malik DAHAMSHAH]; United Torah Judaism [Meir PORUSH]; Yisra'el Ba'Aliya or YBA [Natan SHARANSKY]; Yisra'el Beiteinu [Avigdor LIEBERMAN]
Political pressure groups and leaders NA Israeli nationalists advocating Jewish settlement on the West Bank and Gaza Strip; Peace Now supports territorial concessions in the West Bank and Gaza Strip; Yesha (settler) Council promotes settler interests and opposes territorial compromise; B'Tselem monitors human rights abuses
Population 47,425,336 (July 2005 est.) 6,029,529 (July 2002 est.)


note: includes about 187,000 Israeli settlers in the West Bank, about 20,000 in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, more than 5,000 in the Gaza Strip, and fewer than 177,000 in East Jerusalem (February 2003 est.)
Population below poverty line 29% (2003 est.) NA%
Population growth rate -0.63% (2005 est.) 1.48% (2002 est.)
Ports and harbors Feodosiya, Kerch, Kherson, Mariupol', Mykolayiv, Odesa, Reni, Yuzhnyy Ashdod, Ashqelon, Elat (Eilat), Hadera, Haifa, Tel Aviv-Yafo
Radio broadcast stations AM 134, FM 289, shortwave 4 (1998) AM 23, FM 15, shortwave 2 (1998)
Radios - 3.07 million (1997)
Railways total: 22,473 km


broad gauge: 22,473 km 1.524-m gauge (9,250 km electrified) (2004)
total: 647 km


standard gauge: 647 km 1.435-m gauge (2001)
Religions Ukrainian Orthodox - Kiev Patriarchate 19%, Orthodox (no particular jurisdiction) 16%, Ukrainian Orthodox - Moscow Patriarchate 9%, Ukrainian Greek Catholic 6%, Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox 1.7%, Protestant, Jewish, none 38% (2004 est.) Jewish 80.1%, Muslim 14.6% (mostly Sunni Muslim), Christian 2.1%, other 3.2% (1996 est.)
Sex ratio at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 0.92 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.51 male(s)/female


total population: 0.86 male(s)/female (2005 est.)
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.75 male(s)/female


total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2002 est.)
Suffrage 18 years of age; universal 18 years of age; universal
Telephone system general assessment: Ukraine's telecommunication development plan, running through 2005, emphasizes improving domestic trunk lines, international connections, and the mobile cellular system


domestic: at independence in December 1991, Ukraine inherited a telephone system that was antiquated, inefficient, and in disrepair; more than 3.5 million applications for telephones could not be satisfied; telephone density is now rising slowly and the domestic trunk system is being improved; the mobile cellular telephone system is expanding at a high rate


international: country code - 380; two new domestic trunk lines are a part of the fiber-optic Trans-Asia-Europe (TAE) system and three Ukrainian links have been installed in the fiber-optic Trans-European Lines (TEL) project that connects 18 countries; additional international service is provided by the Italy-Turkey-Ukraine-Russia (ITUR) fiber-optic submarine cable and by earth stations in the Intelsat, Inmarsat, and Intersputnik satellite systems
general assessment: most highly developed system in the Middle East although not the largest


domestic: good system of coaxial cable and microwave radio relay; all systems are digital


international: 3 submarine cables; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (2 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean)
Telephones - main lines in use 10,833,300 (2002) 2.8 million (1999)
Telephones - mobile cellular 4.2 million (2002) 2.5 million (1999)
Television broadcast stations at least 33 (plus 21 repeaters that relay broadcasts from Russia) (1997) 17 (plus 36 low-power repeaters) (1995)
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 Negev desert in the south; low coastal plain; central mountains; Jordan Rift Valley
Total fertility rate 1.4 children born/woman (2005 est.) 2.54 children born/woman (2002 est.)
Unemployment rate 3.5% officially registered; large number of unregistered or underemployed workers; the International Labor Organization calculates that Ukraine's real unemployment level is around 9-10 percent (2004 est.) 10.4% (2002 est.)
Waterways 1,672 km (most on Dnieper River) (2004) none
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