Geography & environment — Ukraine
Location, land area, terrain, climate, and natural resources.
Profile updated 2026-06-02
⚡ Geography & environment at a glance
Location, land area, terrain, climate, and natural resources. Key figure for Ukraine: Europe
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Location & size
- Geographic Location
Europe
- Geographic Coordinates
49 00 N, 32 00 E
- Total Area
233,031 Square Miles 603,550 Square Kilometers
- Land Area
223,679 Square Miles 579,330 Square Kilometers
- Water Area
9,351 Square Miles 24,220 Square Kilometers
- Land Boundaries
2,837 Miles 4,566 Kilometers
- Border Countries
Belarus 891 km, Hungary 103 km, Moldova 939 km, Poland 526 km, Romania (south) 169 km, Romania (west) 362 km, Russia 1,576 km, Slovakia 97 km
- Coastline
1,729 Miles 2,782 Kilometers
Physical geography
- Terrain
most of Ukraine consists of fertile plains (steppes) and plateaus, mountains being found only in the west (the Carpathians), and in the Crimean Peninsula in the extreme south
- Highest Point
2,061 Meters
- Highest Point Location
Hora Hoverla 2,061 m
- Lowest Point Location
Black Sea 0 m
- Natural Resources
iron ore, coal, manganese, natural gas, oil, salt, sulfur, graphite, titanium, magnesium, kaolin, nickel, mercury, timber, arable land
- Irrigated Land
8,398 Square Miles 21,750 Square Kilometers
Climate & time
- Time Zone
UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
- Daylight saving time
+1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October
Climate
- Climate
- The Ukraine climate is similar to the wheat-producing regions of Canada and is characterized by abundant precipitation and cloudy skies, especially in fall and winter. Snow can start as early as October and not end until April. The mean temperature in summer is 87°F (30°C) and in winter 16°F (-8°C). Although summers are short, the temperature can soar to the 90s. Mediterranean only on the southern 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 plateaus, mountains being found only in the west (the Carpathians), and in the Crimean Peninsula in the extreme south
- Location
Eastern Europe, bordering the Black Sea, between Poland, Romania, and Moldova in the west and Russia in the east
- Total Area
233,031 Square Miles 603,550 Square Kilometers
- Border Countries
Belarus 891 km, Hungary 103 km, Moldova 939 km, Poland 526 km, Romania (south) 169 km, Romania (west) 362 km, Russia 1,576 km, Slovakia 97 km
Environment
- 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
- Environment - International Agreements
- party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulfur 85, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed,
- but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds