III. Ukraine

Ukraine is located in eastern Europe, after Russia it is the second largest country on the continent. It is bordered by Belarus on the north, Russia on the east, the Sea of Azov and the Black Sea on the south, Moldova and Romania on the southwest, and Hungary, Slovakia, and Poland on the west; in the far southeast, Ukraine is separated from Russia by the Kerch Strait, which connects the Sea of Azov to the Black Sea. Ukraine has an area of 603,700 square kilometres. The capital is Kyiv, located on the Dnieper River in north-central Ukraine.An independent Ukraine emerged only late in the 20th century, after long periods of successive domination by Poland-Lithuania, Russia, and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. With the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1990-91 the Ukrainian S.S.R.'s legislature declared sovereignty (July 16, 1990) and then declared outright independence (Aug. 24, 1991), a move that was confirmed by popular approval in a plebiscite soon afterward. The country changed its official name to Ukraine, and it helped found the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS).

1. How well do you know the geography of your country? Supply the information missing in the following text about Ukraine.

Ukraine is situated in the part of Central Europe and has its own territory, government, national emblem, flag and anthem. It borders on on land and on sea.

The territory of Ukraine is mostly. There are the Mountains in the Crimean peninsula and the in the west, but they are not very high. Mixed forests of cover the mountains, but the thickest woods can still be found in the part of the republic, in. Kyiv and Cherkassy lie in the midst of Ukrainian southernmost pine forest. The main Ukrainian river is the. It is one of the longest European rivers and one of the republic's main sources of hydroelectric power.

The climate of the country is. Winter is rather, with.

The rivers and lakes in winter. The average winter temperature varies from. Summer is quite with

The fertile black soil is well watered in spring and autumn and gets plenty of sunshine in summer.

Due to favorable climatic conditions, Ukraine is traditionally an agricultural area. It grows

Ukraine is one of the world's main centers of

The country is rich in natural resources, such as

It has developed a varied industry, concentrated mostly in and around

It produces

are main Ukrainian ports.