Editing History of Ukraine (section)

==== West Ukrainian People's Republic ====
{{Main|West Ukrainian People's Republic}}

Simultaneously, a separate Ukrainian state was established in the western part of the country. The [[West Ukrainian People's Republic]] (WUPR) was proclaimed on 19 October 1918, following the disintegration of the [[Austro-Hungarian Empire]]. This new state centered around [[Eastern Galicia]], including the key city of [[Lviv]], [[Transcarpathia]] and extended into parts of [[Bukovina]], areas with substantial Ukrainian populations. The WUPR government, led by [[Yevhen Petrushevych]], aspired to build an independent Ukrainian state in Western Ukraine, distinct from both Polish and Russian influences.<ref name=Shkandrij2>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DjZ-m82b91MC&dq=West+Ukrainian+People%27s+Republic+independence&pg=PA206 |title=Russia And Ukraine |author-first=Myroslav |author-last=Shkandrij |publisher=[[McGill-Queen's University Press]] |date=2001 |isbn=0-7735-2234-4 |page=206}}</ref><ref>[https://www.ukrinform.net/rubric-society/2335111-ukraine-marks-anniversary-of-west-ukrainian-peoples-republic.html   Ukraine marks anniversary of establishment of West Ukrainian People's Republic]</ref>

[[File:Pic U K Ukrainian Galician Army supreme command.jpg|thumb|The Supreme Command of the Ukrainian Galician Army. Sitting, 5th through 7th from left, Gen [[Mykhailo Omelianovych-Pavlenko]], Col Viktor Kurmanovych, and Otaman Alfred Schamanek]]
The WUPR quickly developed its administrative structures, forming the [[Ukrainian Galician Army]] to defend its territories and introducing social and economic reforms to stabilize the new state. However, the WUPR’s claim over Eastern Galicia sparked immediate conflict with the [[Second Polish Republic|re-established Polish state]], which also sought control over the region. This territorial dispute erupted into the [[Polish-Ukrainian War]] (1918-1919), beginning with fierce fighting in Lviv, where Polish paramilitary forces resisted Ukrainian authority.<ref>[https://encyclopedia.1914-1918-online.net/article/polish-ukrainian-conflict-over-eastern-galicia/   Polish-Ukrainian Conflict over Eastern Galicia]</ref>

Although Ukrainian forces initially gained some ground, the Polish Army, bolstered by material support from the [[Entente Powers]], soon regained momentum. By mid-1919, the Polish Army launched a major offensive, pushing back the Ukrainian Galician Army and regaining control over contested areas. Facing overwhelming opposition, WUPR forces retreated into Ukrainian People's Republic (UPR) territory by July 1919, marking the end of the WUPR as an independent state.<ref name="Chojnowski">[http://www.encyclopediaofukraine.com/display.asp?AddButton=pages\N\O\NovemberUprisinginLviv1918.htm Encyclopedia of Ukraine, vol. 5, 1993] entry written by Andrzej Chojnowski</ref>