On the 24th of February, Russia invaded Ukraine. This article is not going to be about that. Instead, let us take a look at Ukraine itself, a country many people knew very little about beforehand, and that now is known only in terms of the war.
The Basics
Ukraine is a country in eastern Europe. By area, it is the second-largest country in Europe, as it spans 603,628 square km. It borders Russia, Belarus, Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania, and Moldova, as well as the Sea of Azov and the Black Sea.
About 41 million people live in Ukraine, and if you want to call one of them, you need to dial +380. The currency is called Hryvnia (₴) (UAH). The capital city is Kyiv, which is also the largest city in the country. The flag is blue and yellow and has been used as the national flag since 1848. When Ukraine was a part of the Soviet Union, the blue and yellow flag was outlawed, and instead, the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic used a flag that was red on top with a golden hammer and sickle and a golden-bordered star on top, and with a blue row in the bottom. The blue and yellow flag was reintroduced in 1991.
The History
Way way back in time, around 43.000-45.000 BC, groups of Neanderthals lived in the area that is now Ukraine. The settlements of modern humans date back to 32.000 BC.
In the 9th century, Kyiv was the capital of the largest nation in Europe which included today's Ukraine, Russia and Belarus. The population was called Rus and consisted of both Slavic and Scandinavian people. This nation only lasted a couple hundred years, as it was invaded by the Mongolians in the 13th century and then fractured completely. What followed was a long period of invasions and changes in the country's borders.
In the 18th and 19th centuries, the territory of today's Ukraine was part of the Russian Empire. As with many other countries, there were growing waves of romantic nationalism in the middle of the 19th century with the goal of social justice and national rebirth. After the Russian revolution in 1917, a Ukrainian movement for self-determination emerged. The predecessor to modern Ukraine was declared in June 1917, and in January 1918, they declared themselves independent from Russia. However, there were multiple Ukrainian republics at this time, and they didn't all get along, leading to both civil war and war with the neighboring countries. By 1921, most of Ukraine had been taken over by the Soviet Union, while other parts had been taken by Poland, Romania and Czechoslovakia. Ukraine remained part of the SSSR until 1991 when it gained its independence after long confrontations with the central Soviet authorities.
In 2004, what is known as the Orange Revolution took place. The conflict was the recent presidential elections, which the Supreme Court of Ukraine later ruled had been largely rigged. The results of the elections led to a public uproar in support of the opposition candidate, Viktor Yushchenko. During the months of revolution, he suddenly became violently ill as a result of being poisoned.
In 2013, there were a lot of protests, called the Euromaidan, as a result of the president moving away from an agreement with the European Union and instead choosing to become closer with Russia. This led a lot of people to protest, and many others to counter-protest. As a result of all the unrest that followed, Members of Parliament voted in 2014 to remove the president, leading to a pro-EU president being elected, which has been described by some as a coup. This move towards the EU was a large part of the reason Russia wanted to annex Crimea, which happened shortly after the pro-Russia Ukrainian president had been removed. Crimea was important to Russia as there is an important military port on the peninsula. Crimea voted to join Russia, but the United Nations declared the referendum invalid - however, it wasn't enforceable. A period with unlawful militias seizing buildings and the like followed, until an official ceasefire in 2015.
In 2016, Ukraine joined the EU's Free Trade Area which in time will integrate it with the EU Internal Market, and in 2017, Ukrainians became able to travel visa-free in Europe, leading it closer to the EU - and further from Russia.
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