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

Terrain: most of Ukraine consists of fertile plains (steppes) and
plateaux, mountains being found only in the west (the Carpathians),
and in the Crimean Peninsula in the extreme south
lowest point: Black Sea 0 m
highest point: Hora Hoverla 2,061 m

Natural resources: iron ore, coal, manganese, natural gas, oil,
salt, sulfur, graphite, titanium, magnesium, kaolin, nickel,
mercury, timber

Land use:
arable land: 56%
permanent crops: 2%
meadows and pastures: 12%
forest and woodland: 0%
other: 30%

Irrigated land: 26,000 sq km (1990)

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
natural hazards: NA
international agreements: party to - Air Pollution, Air
Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Antarctic
Treaty, Biodiversity, Environmental Modification, Marine Dumping,
Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution; signed,
but not ratified - Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile
Organic Compounds, Climate Change, Law of the Sea

Geographic note: strategic position at the crossroads between
Europe and Asia; second-largest country in Europe

People
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Population: 50,864,009 (July 1996 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 20% (male 5,139,034; female 4,936,901)
15-64 years: 66% (male 16,135,671; female 17,433,600)
65 years and over: 14% (male 2,318,629; female 4,900,174) (July 1996
est.)

Population growth rate: -0.4% (1996 est.)

Birth rate: 11.17 births/1,000 population (1996 est.)

Death rate: 15.16 deaths/1,000 population (1996 est.)

Net migration rate: 0.03 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1996 est.)

Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.93 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.47 male(s)/female
all ages: 0.86 male(s)/female (1996 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 22.5 deaths/1,000 live births (1996 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 66.8 years
male: 61.54 years
female: 72.32 years (1996 est.)

Total fertil