Editing Ukraine (section)

== Geography ==
{{Main|Geography of Ukraine}}
[[File:Topographic map of Ukraine (with borders and towns).svg|thumb|Topographic map of Ukraine with borders and cities]]
Ukraine is the [[List of European countries by area|second-largest European country]], after Russia, and the largest country entirely in Europe. Lying between latitudes [[44th parallel north|44°]] and [[53rd parallel north|53° N]], and longitudes [[22nd meridian east|22°]] and [[41st meridian east|41° E]]., it is mostly in the [[East European Plain]]. Ukraine covers an area of {{convert|603550|km2}}, with a coastline of {{convert|2782|km}}.<ref name="cia"/>

The landscape of Ukraine consists mostly of fertile [[steppes]] (plains with few trees) and plateaus, crossed by rivers such as the Dnieper, [[Seversky Donets]], Dniester and the [[Southern Bug]] as they flow south into the Black Sea and the smaller [[Sea of Azov]]. To the southwest, the [[Danube Delta]] forms the border with Romania. Ukraine's regions have diverse geographic features, ranging from the highlands to the lowlands. The country's only mountains are the [[Carpathian Mountains]] in the west, of which the highest is [[Hoverla]] at {{convert|2061|m}}, and the Crimean Mountains, in the extreme south along the coast.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.britannica.com/eb/article-30093/Ukraine |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080115052701/https://www.britannica.com/eb/article-30093/Ukraine |archive-date=15 January 2008 |title=Ukraine – Relief |access-date=27 December 2007 |website=Encyclopædia Britannica (fee required) |url-status=dead}}</ref>

Ukraine also has a number of highland regions such as the [[Volhynian-Podolian Upland|Volyn-Podillia Upland]] (in the west) and the Near-Dnipro Upland (on the right bank of the Dnieper). To the east there are the south-western spurs of the [[Central Russian Upland]] over which runs the border with Russia. Near the Sea of Azov are the Donets Ridge and the Near Azov Upland. The [[snow melt]] from the mountains feeds the rivers and their [[waterfalls of Ukraine|waterfalls]].

Significant natural resources in Ukraine include [[lithium]],<ref>{{Cite news |last=Tabuchi |first=Hiroko |author-link=Hiroko Tabuchi |date=2 March 2022 |title=Before Invasion, Ukraine's Lithium Wealth Was Drawing Global Attention |language=en-US |work=[[The New York Times]] |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/03/02/climate/ukraine-lithium.html |access-date=3 March 2022 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> natural gas,<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=Mining – UkraineInvest |date=8 May 2020 |url=https://ukraineinvest.gov.ua/industries/mining/ |access-date=3 March 2022 |language=en-US}}</ref> [[kaolin]],<ref name=":0"/> timber<ref>{{Cite web |last=Nature |first=Preferred by |title=Ukraine Timber Risk Profile |url=https://preferredbynature.org/sourcinghub/timber/ukraine-timber-risk-profile |access-date=3 March 2022 |website=NEPCon – Preferred by Nature |language=en |archive-date=26 November 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201126092543/https://preferredbynature.org/sourcinghub/timber/ukraine-timber-risk-profile |url-status=dead}}</ref> and an abundance of [[arable land]].<ref>{{Cite book |date=2020 |title=Overview of soil conditions of arable land in Ukraine – Study case for steppe and forest-steppe zones. |url=https://www.fao.org/documents/card/en/c/ca7761en/ |access-date=7 March 2022 |publisher=[[Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations]] |doi=10.4060/ca7761en |isbn=978-92-5-132215-4 |s2cid=242588829 |language=en}}</ref> Ukraine has many environmental issues.<ref>{{Cite web |date=25 February 2022 |title=Ukraine invasion: rapid overview of environmental issues |url=https://ceobs.org/ukraine-invasion-rapid-overview-of-environmental-issues/ |access-date=3 March 2022 |website=CEOBS |language=en-GB}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |date=January 2016 |title=Ukraine Country Environmental Analysis |url=https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/handle/10986/24971 |journal=[[World Bank]] |language=en-US |last1=Bank |first1=World |doi=10.1596/24971 |hdl=10986/24971 |hdl-access=free}}</ref> Some regions lack adequate supplies of potable water.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) |url=https://www.unicef.org/ukraine/en/water-sanitation-and-hygiene-wash |access-date=3 March 2022 |website=unicef.org |language=en |archive-date=3 March 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220303120132/https://www.unicef.org/ukraine/en/water-sanitation-and-hygiene-wash |url-status=dead}}</ref> Air and water pollution affects the country, as well as deforestation, and radiation contamination in the northeast from the 1986 accident at the [[Chernobyl]] Nuclear Power Plant.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://naturvernforbundet.no/international/environmental-issues-in-ukraine/category948.html |title=Environmental issues in Ukraine |publisher=Naturvernforbundet |date=16 July 2017 |access-date=6 March 2022 |archive-date=6 March 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220306201646/https://naturvernforbundet.no/international/environmental-issues-in-ukraine/category948.html |url-status=dead}}</ref> The environmental damage caused by the [[Russian invasion of Ukraine]] has been described as an [[ecocide]],<ref>{{Cite news |date=19 March 2022 |title=Ukrainians hope to rebuild greener country after Russia's war causes 'ecocide' |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/climate-change/news/ukraine-green-ecocide-russia-war-b2038825.html |access-date=7 June 2023 |work=[[The Independent]]}}</ref> the [[Destruction of the Kakhovka Dam|destruction]] of [[Kakhovka Dam]], severe pollution and millions of tonnes of contaminated debris is estimated to cost over [[USD]] 50 billion to repair.<ref name="pax">[https://paxforpeace.nl/news/overview/ten-step-plan-to-address-environmental-impact-of-war-in-ukraine "Ten-Step plan to address environmental impact of war in Ukraine"] PAX for Peace. 24 February 2023. Accessed 30 April 2023.</ref><ref name="enviroyale">[https://e360.yale.edu/digest/russia-ukraine-war-environmental-cost-one-year "One Year In, Russia's War on Ukraine Has Inflicted $51 Billion in Environmental Damage"] e360.yale.edu. 22 February 2023. Accessed 30 April 2023.</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2 June 2023 |title=The Environmental Cost of the War in Ukraine |url=https://www.irreview.org/articles/the-environmental-cost-of-the-war-in-ukraine |access-date=7 June 2023 |website=International Relations Review |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Graham-Harrison |first=Emma |date=27 August 2022 |title=Toxins in soil, blasted forests – Ukraine counts cost of Putin's 'ecocide' |language=en-GB |work=The Observer |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/aug/27/destroyed-nature-ukrainians-race-to-gather-evidence-of-putins-ecocide |access-date=7 June 2023 |issn=0029-7712}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=One Year In, Russia's War on Ukraine Has Inflicted $51 Billion in Environmental Damage |url=https://e360.yale.edu/digest/russia-ukraine-war-environmental-cost-one-year |access-date=2023-07-01 |website=Yale E360 |language=en-US}}</ref>{{Excessive citations inline|date=September 2023}}

=== Climate ===
[[File:Koppen-Geiger Map UKR present.svg|thumb|upright=1.2|[[Köppen climate classification]] map of Ukraine]]
Ukraine is in the mid-latitudes, and generally has a [[continental climate]], except for its southern coasts, which have [[Cold semi-arid climate|cold semi-arid]] and [[humid subtropical climate]]s.<ref name=faoclimate>{{cite web |url=http://www.fao.org/ag/agp/AGPC/doc/Counprof/Ukraine/ukraine.htm |title=Ukraine |work=Country Pasture/Forage Resource Profiles |publisher=[[Food and Agriculture Organization]] |access-date=8 August 2016 |archive-date=6 October 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161006014817/http://www.fao.org/ag/agp/AGPC/doc/Counprof/Ukraine/ukraine.htm |url-status=dead}}</ref> Average annual temperatures range from {{convert|5.5|–|7|°C|°F|1}} in the north, to {{convert|11|–|13|°C|°F|1}} in the south.<ref name="ebclimate">{{cite encyclopedia |title=Ukraine – Climate |encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/place/Ukraine |access-date=20 October 2015}}</ref> [[precipitation (meteorology)|Precipitation]] is highest in the west and north and lowest in the east and southeast.<ref name=ebclimate/> Western Ukraine, particularly in the Carpathian Mountains, receives around {{convert|120|cm|in|1}} of precipitation annually, while Crimea and the coastal areas of the Black Sea receive around {{convert|40|cm|in|1}}.<ref name=ebclimate/>

Water availability from the major river basins is expected to decrease [[Effects of climate change|due to climate change]], especially in summer. This poses risks to the agricultural sector.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Didovets |first1=Iulii |last2=Krysanova |first2=Valentina |last3=Hattermann |first3=Fred Fokko |last4=del Rocío Rivas López |first4=María |last5=Snizhko |first5=Sergiy |last6=Müller Schmied |first6=Hannes |date=1 December 2020 |title=Climate change impact on water availability of main river basins in Ukraine |journal=Journal of Hydrology: Regional Studies |language=en |volume=32 |pages=100761 |doi=10.1016/j.ejrh.2020.100761 |bibcode=2020JHyRS..3200761D |s2cid=230613418 |issn=2214-5818 |doi-access=free}}</ref> The negative [[Effects of climate change on agriculture|impacts of climate change on agriculture]] are mostly felt in the south of the country, which has a [[steppe]] climate. In the north, some crops may be able to benefit from a longer growing season.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Skrypnyk |first1=Andriy |last2=Zhemoyda |first2=Oleksandr |last3=Klymenko |first3=Nataliia |last4=Galaieva |first4=Liudmyla |last5=Koval |first5=Tatiana |date=1 March 2021 |title=Econometric Analysis of the Impact of Climate Change on the Sustainability of Agricultural Production in Ukraine |url=http://www.jeeng.net/Econometric-Analysis-of-the-Impact-of-Climate-Change-on-the-Sustainability-of-Agricultural,132945,0,2.html |journal=Journal of Ecological Engineering |volume=22 |issue=3 |pages=275–288 |doi=10.12911/22998993/132945 |s2cid=233801987 |issn=2299-8993 |doi-access=free|bibcode=2021JEcoE..22..275S }}</ref> The [[World Bank]] has stated that Ukraine is highly [[Climate change vulnerability|vulnerable to climate change]].<ref>{{cite web |title=World Bank Climate Change Knowledge Portal |url=https://climateknowledgeportal.worldbank.org/country/ukraine |website=climateknowledgeportal.worldbank.org |language=en}}</ref>

=== Biodiversity ===
{{main|Wildlife of Ukraine}}{{see also|List of ecoregions in Ukraine}}
[[File:WLE - 2020 - Ай-Петринська яйла.jpg|thumb|View from the western slope of Mount Ai-Petri of the [[Ai-Petri]] plateau, in Crimea designated by the Ukrainian government as a natural heritage site]]
Ukraine contains six terrestrial [[ecoregion]]s: [[Central European mixed forests]], [[Crimean Submediterranean forest complex]], [[East European forest steppe]], [[Pannonian mixed forests]], [[Carpathian montane conifer forests]], and Pontic steppe.<ref name="DinersteinOlson2017">{{cite journal |last1=Dinerstein |first1=Eric |last2=Olson |first2=David |last3=Joshi |first3=Anup |last4=Vynne |first4=Carly |last5=Burgess |first5=Neil D. |last6=Wikramanayake |first6=Eric |last7=Hahn |first7=Nathan |last8=Palminteri |first8=Suzanne |last9=Hedao |first9=Prashant |last10=Noss |first10=Reed |last11=Hansen |first11=Matt |display-authors=1 |year=2017 |title=An Ecoregion-Based Approach to Protecting Half the Terrestrial Realm |journal=[[BioScience]] |volume=67 |issue=6 |pages=534–545 |doi=10.1093/biosci/bix014 |issn=0006-3568 |pmc=5451287 |pmid=28608869 |doi-access=free |last18=Martin |first42=Yara |first45=Paulo |last45=van Breugel |first44=Jens-Peter Barnekow |last44=Lillesø |first43=Roeland |last43=Kindt |last42=Shennan-Farpón |first46=Lars |first41=Heinz |last41=Klöser |first40=Jonathan |last40=Timberlake |first39=Shahina A. |last39=Ghazanfar |first38=Annette |last46=Graudal |last47=Voge |first37=Anthony G. |last15=Barber |last12=Locke |first12=Harvey |last13=Ellis |first13=Erle C |last14=Jones |first14=Benjamin |first15=Charles Victor |first47=Maianna |last16=Hayes |first16=Randy |last17=Kormos |first49=Muhammad |last49=Saleem |first48=Khalaf F. |last48=Al-Shammari |last38=Patzelt |last37=Miller |first18=Vance |last23=Weeden |last26=Sizer |first25=Crystal |last25=Davis |first24=Kierán |last24=Suckling |first23=Don |first22=Jonathan E. M. |last27=Moore |last22=Baillie |first21=Lori |last21=Price |first20=Wes |last20=Sechrest |first19=Eileen |last19=Crist |first26=Nigel |first27=Rebecca |first36=Othman A. |first32=Alexandra |last36=Llewellyn |first35=José C. |last35=Brito |first34=Lilian |last34=Pintea |first33=Nadia |last33=de Souza |last32=Tyukavina |last28=Thau |first31=Svetlana |last31=Turubanova |first30=Peter |last30=Potapov |first29=Tanya |last29=Birch |first17=Cyril |first28=David}}</ref> There is somewhat more [[conifer]]ous than [[deciduous]] forest.<ref name="ShvidenkoBukshaKrakovska2017"/> The most densely forested area is [[Polisia]] in the northwest, with pine, oak, and birch.<ref name="ShvidenkoBukshaKrakovska2017">{{cite journal |last1=Shvidenko |first1=Anatoly |last2=Buksha |first2=Igor |last3=Krakovska |first3=Svitlana |last4=Lakyda |first4=Petro |title=Vulnerability of Ukrainian Forests to Climate Change |journal=[[Sustainability (journal)|Sustainability]] |date=30 June 2017 |volume=9 |issue=7 |page=1152 |eissn=2071-1050 |doi=10.3390/su9071152 |doi-access=free |bibcode=2017Sust....9.1152S}}</ref> There are 45,000 species of animals (mostly invertebrates),<ref name="Conference2001">{{cite book |author=Council of Europe. Conference |date=1 January 2001 |title=Conference Sur la Conservation Et Le Suivi de la Diversite Biologique Et Paysagere en Ukraine |language=fr |trans-title=Conference on the Conservation and Monitoring of Biological and Landscape Diversity in Ukraine |publisher=[[Council of Europe]] |pages=78– |isbn=9789287146458 |oclc=1056440382 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OuALwoUqnU8C&pg=PA78}}</ref> with approximately 385 endangered species listed in the [[Red Data Book of Ukraine]].<ref name=State>{{Cite web |url=http://enrin.grida.no/htmls/ukraina/soe98/pressure%5Cfauna%5Cindex.htm |title=Welcome to State of The Environment in Ukraine |access-date=21 October 2013 |publisher=The Ministry for Environmental Protection and Nuclear Safety of Ukraine |archive-date=7 July 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090707031611/http://enrin.grida.no/htmls/ukraina/soe98/pressure/fauna/index.htm |url-status=dead}}</ref> [[Ramsar site|Internationally important wetlands]] cover over {{convert|7000|sqkm|sqmi|-2}}, with the Danube Delta being important for conservation.<ref name=wetland>{{Cite web |url=http://www.ramsar.org/pdf/sitelist.pdf |title=The List of Wetlands of International Importance |work=Ukraine |date=11 October 2013 |access-date=21 October 2013 |publisher=Ramsar Organization}}</ref><ref name=Ramsar>{{Cite web |url=http://www.ramsar.org/pdf/cop8/cop8_nrs_ukraine1.pdf |title=National planning tool for the implementation of the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands |year=2002 |access-date=21 October 2013 |publisher=Ramsar organization}}</ref>

=== Urban areas ===
{{Main|List of cities in Ukraine}}
Ukraine has 457 cities, of which 176 are designated as oblast-class, 279 as smaller {{lang|uk-Latn|raion}}-class cities, and two as special legal status cities. There are also 886 urban-type settlements and 28,552 villages.<ref name="oblasts">{{cite web |url=http://gska2.rada.gov.ua:7777/pls/z7502/a002 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071231154652/http://gska2.rada.gov.ua:7777/pls/z7502/a002 |archive-date=31 December 2007 |title=Regions of Ukraine and their divisions |access-date=24 December 2007 |website=[[Verkhovna Rada]] of Ukraine Official Web-site |language=uk}}</ref>

{{Largest cities
| country      = Ukraine
| stat_ref     = 2022 <ref>{{Cite web |url=https://ukrstat.gov.ua/druk/publicat/kat_u/2022/zb/05/zb_%D0%A1huselnist.pdf |title=Number of Present Population of Ukraine, as of January 1 |website=ukrstat.gov.ua |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220704164521/https://ukrstat.gov.ua/druk/publicat/kat_u/2022/zb/05/zb_%D0%A1huselnist.pdf |archive-date=4 July 2022}}</ref>
| div_name     = Region

|city_1 = Kyiv
|div_1 = Kyiv{{!}}Kyiv (city)
|pop_1 = 2,952,301
|img_1 = 2019-07-13 View to Poshtova Square and Podil.jpg

|city_2 = Kharkiv
|div_2 = Kharkiv Oblast{{!}}Kharkiv
|pop_2 = 1,421,125
|img_2 = Будинок держпромисловості 3.jpg

|city_3 = Odesa
|div_3 = Odesa Oblast{{!}}Odesa
|pop_3 = 1,010,537
|img_3 = Адміністративна споруда 02.jpg

|city_4 = Dnipro
|div_4 = Dnipropetrovsk Oblast{{!}}Dnipropetrovsk
|pop_4 = 968,502
|img_4 = Soniachnyi, Dnipro, Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, Ukraine - panoramio.jpg

|city_5 = Donetsk
|div_5 = Donetsk Oblast{{!}}Donetsk
|pop_5 = 901,645

|city_6 = Lviv
|div_6 = Lviv Oblast{{!}}Lviv
|pop_6 = 717,273

|city_7 = Zaporizhzhia
|div_7 = Zaporizhzhia Oblast{{!}}Zaporizhzhia
|pop_7 = 710,052

|city_8 = Kryvyi Rih
|div_8 = Dnipropetrovsk Oblast{{!}}Dnipropetrovsk
|pop_8 = 603,904

|city_9 = Sevastopol
|div_9 = Sevastopol{{!}}Sevastopol (city)
|pop_9 = 479,394

|city_10 = Mykolaiv
|div_10 = Mykolaiv Oblast{{!}}Mykolaiv
|pop_10 = 470,011

|city_11 = Mariupol
|div_11 = Donetsk Oblast{{!}}Donetsk
|pop_11 = 425,681

|city_12 = Luhansk
|div_12 = Luhansk Oblast{{!}}Luhansk
|pop_12 = 397,677

|city_13 = Vinnytsia
|div_13 = Vinnytsia Oblast{{!}}Vinnytsia
|pop_13 = 369,739

|city_14 = Simferopol
|div_14 = Autonomous Republic Crimea{{!}}Crimea
|pop_14 = 340,540

|city_15 = Makiivka
|div_15 = Donetsk Oblast{{!}}Donetsk
|pop_15 = 338,968

|city_16 = Chernihiv
|div_16 = Chernihiv Oblast{{!}}Chernihiv
|pop_16 = 282,747

|city_17 = Poltava
|div_17 = Poltava Oblast{{!}}Poltava
|pop_17 = 279,593

|city_18 = Kherson
|div_18 = Kherson Oblast{{!}}Kherson
|pop_18 = 279,131

|city_19 = Khmelnytskyi
|div_19 = Khmelnytskyi Oblast{{!}}Khmelnytskyi
|pop_19 = 274,452

|city_20 = Cherkasy
|div_20 = Cherkasy Oblast{{!}}Cherkasy
|pop_20 = 269,836
}}