Moldova vs. Ukraine
Introduction
| Moldova | Ukraine | |
|---|---|---|
| Background | A large portion of present day Moldovan territory became a province of the Russian Empire in 1812 and then unified with Romania in 1918 in the aftermath of World War I. This territory was then incorporated into the Soviet Union at the close of World War II. Although Moldova has been independent from the Soviet Union since 1991, Russian forces have remained on Moldovan territory east of the Nistru River in the breakaway region of Transnistria, whose population is roughly equally composed of ethnic Ukrainians, Russians, and Moldovans. Years of Communist Party rule in Moldova from 2001-2009 ultimately ended with election-related violent protests and a rerun of parliamentary elections in 2009. Since then, a series of pro-European ruling coalitions have governed Moldova. As a result of the country's most recent legislative election in February 2019, parliamentary seats are split among the left-leaning Socialist Party (35 seats), the former ruling Democratic Party (30 seats), and the center-right ACUM bloc (26 seats). Parliament voted in Prime Minister Ion CHICU and his cabinet on 14 November 2019, two days after voting to remove his predecessor, ACUM co-leader Maia SANDU, who had been in office since June 2019. | Ukraine was the center of the first eastern Slavic state, Kyivan Rus, which during the 10th and 11th centuries was the largest and most powerful state in Europe. Weakened by internecine quarrels and Mongol invasions, Kyivan Rus was incorporated into the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and eventually into the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. The cultural and religious legacy of Kyivan Rus laid the foundation for Ukrainian nationalism through subsequent centuries. A new Ukrainian state, the Cossack Hetmanate, was established during the mid-17th century after an uprising against the Poles. Despite continuous Muscovite pressure, the Hetmanate managed to remain autonomous for well over 100 years. During the latter part of the 18th century, most Ukrainian ethnographic territory was absorbed by the Russian Empire. Following the collapse of czarist Russia in 1917, Ukraine achieved a short-lived period of independence (1917-20), but was reconquered and endured a brutal Soviet rule that engineered two forced famines (1921-22 and 1932-33) in which over 8 million died. In World War II, German and Soviet armies were responsible for 7 to 8 million more deaths. Although Ukraine achieved independence in 1991 with the dissolution of the USSR, democracy and prosperity remained elusive as the legacy of state control and endemic corruption stalled efforts at economic reform, privatization, and civil liberties. A peaceful mass protest referred to as the "Orange Revolution" in the closing months of 2004 forced the authorities to overturn a rigged presidential election and to allow a new internationally monitored vote that swept into power a reformist slate under Viktor YUSHCHENKO. Subsequent internal squabbles in the YUSHCHENKO camp allowed his rival Viktor YANUKOVYCH to stage a comeback in parliamentary (Rada) elections, become prime minister in August 2006, and be elected president in February 2010. In October 2012, Ukraine held Rada elections, widely criticized by Western observers as flawed due to use of government resources to favor ruling party candidates, interference with media access, and harassment of opposition candidates. President YANUKOVYCH's backtracking on a trade and cooperation agreement with the EU in November 2013 - in favor of closer economic ties with Russia - and subsequent use of force against students, civil society activists, and other civilians in favor of the agreement led to a three-month protest occupation of Kyiv's central square. The government's use of violence to break up the protest camp in February 2014 led to all out pitched battles, scores of deaths, international condemnation, a failed political deal, and the president's abrupt departure for Russia. New elections in the spring allowed pro-West president Petro POROSHENKO to assume office in June 2014; he was succeeded by Volodymyr ZELENSKY in May 2019. Shortly after YANUKOVYCH's departure in late February 2014, Russian President PUTIN ordered the invasion of Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula falsely claiming the action was to protect ethnic Russians living there. Two weeks later, a "referendum" was held regarding the integration of Crimea into the Russian Federation. The "referendum" was condemned as illegitimate by the Ukrainian Government, the EU, the US, and the UN General Assembly (UNGA). In response to Russia's illegal annexation of Crimea, 100 members of the UN passed UNGA resolution 68/262, rejecting the "referendum" as baseless and invalid and confirming the sovereignty, political independence, unity, and territorial integrity of Ukraine. In mid-2014, Russia began supplying proxies in two of Ukraine's eastern provinces with manpower, funding, and materiel driving an armed conflict with the Ukrainian Government that continues to this day. Representatives from Ukraine, Russia, and the unrecognized Russian proxy republics signed the Minsk Protocol and Memorandum in September 2014 to end the conflict. However, this agreement failed to stop the fighting or find a political solution. In a renewed attempt to alleviate ongoing clashes, leaders of Ukraine, Russia, France, and Germany negotiated a follow-on Package of Measures in February 2015 to implement the Minsk agreements. Representatives from Ukraine, Russia, the unrecognized Russian proxy republics, and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe also meet regularly to facilitate implementation of the peace deal. More than 13,000 civilians have been killed or wounded as a result of the Russian intervention in eastern Ukraine.
|
Geography
| Moldova | Ukraine | |
|---|---|---|
| Location | Eastern Europe, northeast of Romania | Eastern Europe, bordering the Black Sea, between Poland, Romania, and Moldova in the west and Russia in the east |
| Geographic coordinates | 47 00 N, 29 00 E | 49 00 N, 32 00 E |
| Map references | Europe | AsiaEurope |
| Area | total: 33,851 sq km land: 32,891 sq km water: 960 sq km | total: 603,550 sq km land: 579,330 sq km water: 24,220 sq km note: approximately 43,133 sq km, or about 7.1% of Ukraine's area, is Russian occupied; the seized area includes all of Crimea and about one-third of both Luhans'k and Donets'k oblasts |
| Area - comparative | slightly larger than Maryland | almost four times the size of Georgia; slightly smaller than Texas |
| Land boundaries | total: 1,885 km border countries (2): Romania 683 km, Ukraine 1202 km | total: 5,581 km border countries (7): Belarus 1111 km, Hungary 128 km, Moldova 1202 km, Poland 498 km, Romania 601 km, Russia 1944 km, Slovakia 97 km |
| Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 2,782 km |
| Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 m or to the depth of exploitation |
| Climate | moderate winters, warm summers | temperate continental; 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; warm summers across the greater part of the country, hot in the south |
| Terrain | rolling steppe, gradual slope south to Black Sea | mostly fertile plains (steppes) and plateaus, with mountains found only in the west (the Carpathians) or in the extreme south of the Crimean Peninsula |
| Elevation extremes | highest point: Dealul Balanesti 430 m lowest point: Dniester (Nistru) 2 m mean elevation: 139 m | highest point: Hora Hoverla 2,061 m lowest point: Black Sea 0 m mean elevation: 175 m |
| Natural resources | lignite, phosphorites, gypsum, limestone, arable land | iron ore, coal, manganese, natural gas, oil, salt, sulfur, graphite, titanium, magnesium, kaolin, nickel, mercury, timber, arable land |
| Land use | agricultural land: 74.9% (2018 est.) arable land: 55.1% (2018 est.) permanent crops: 9.1% (2018 est.) permanent pasture: 10.7% (2018 est.) forest: 11.9% (2018 est.) other: 13.2% (2018 est.) | agricultural land: 71.2% (2018 est.) arable land: 56.1% (2018 est.) permanent crops: 1.5% (2018 est.) permanent pasture: 13.6% (2018 est.) forest: 16.8% (2018 est.) other: 12% (2018 est.) |
| Irrigated land | 2,283 sq km (2012) | 21,670 sq km (2012) |
| Natural hazards | landslides | occasional floods; occasional droughts |
| Environment - current issues | heavy use of agricultural chemicals, has contaminated soil and groundwater; extensive soil erosion and declining soil fertility from poor farming methods | air and water pollution; land degradation; solid waste management; biodiversity loss; deforestation; radiation contamination in the northeast from 1986 accident at Chornobyl' Nuclear Power Plant |
| Environment - international agreements | party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Heavy Metals, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Climate Change-Paris Agreement, Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Multi-effect Protocol | party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Antarctic-Environmental Protection, Antarctic- Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Climate Change-Paris Agreement, Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping-London Convention, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Heavy Metals, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds |
| Geography - note | landlocked; well endowed with various sedimentary rocks and minerals including sand, gravel, gypsum, and limestone | strategic position at the crossroads between Europe and Asia; second-largest country in Europe after Russia |
| Total renewable water resources | 12.27 billion cubic meters (2017 est.) | 175.28 billion cubic meters (2017 est.) |
| Population distribution | pockets of agglomeration exist throughout the country, the largest being in the center of the country around the capital of Chisinau, followed by Tiraspol and Balti | densest settlement in the eastern (Donbas) and western regions; noteable concentrations in and around major urban areas of Kyiv, Kharkiv, Donets'k, Dnipropetrovs'k, and Odesa |
Demographics
| Moldova | Ukraine | |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 3,323,875 (July 2021 est.) | 43,745,640 (July 2021 est.) |
| Age structure | 0-14 years: 18.31% (male 317,243/female 298,673) 15-24 years: 11.27% (male 196,874/female 182,456) 25-54 years: 43.13% (male 738,103/female 712,892) 55-64 years: 13.26% (male 205,693/female 240,555) 65 years and over: 14.03% (male 186,949/female 285,058) (2020 est.) | 0-14 years: 16.16% (male 3,658,127/female 3,438,887) 15-24 years: 9.28% (male 2,087,185/female 1,987,758) 25-54 years: 43.66% (male 9,456,905/female 9,718,758) 55-64 years: 13.87% (male 2,630,329/female 3,463,851) 65 years and over: 17.03% (male 2,523,600/female 4,957,539) (2020 est.) |
| Median age | total: 37.7 years male: 36.2 years female: 39.5 years (2020 est.) | total: 41.2 years male: 38.2 years female: 44.3 years (2020 est.) |
| Population growth rate | -1.1% (2021 est.) | -0.49% (2021 est.) |
| Birth rate | 10.45 births/1,000 population (2021 est.) | 9.23 births/1,000 population (2021 est.) |
| Death rate | 12.46 deaths/1,000 population (2021 est.) | 13.9 deaths/1,000 population (2021 est.) |
| Net migration rate | -8.95 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2021 est.) | -0.26 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2021 est.) |
| Sex ratio | at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female 0-14 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-24 years: 1.08 male(s)/female 25-54 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 55-64 years: 0.86 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.66 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2020 est.) | at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female 0-14 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-24 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 25-54 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 55-64 years: 0.76 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.51 male(s)/female total population: 0.86 male(s)/female (2020 est.) |
| Infant mortality rate | total: 11.83 deaths/1,000 live births male: 13.8 deaths/1,000 live births female: 9.73 deaths/1,000 live births (2021 est.) | total: 7.44 deaths/1,000 live births male: 8.38 deaths/1,000 live births female: 6.45 deaths/1,000 live births (2021 est.) |
| Life expectancy at birth | total population: 72.16 years male: 68.3 years female: 76.26 years (2021 est.) | total population: 73.18 years male: 68.51 years female: 78.15 years (2021 est.) |
| Total fertility rate | 1.58 children born/woman (2021 est.) | 1.56 children born/woman (2021 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate | 0.8% (2020 est.) | 1% (2020 est.) |
| Nationality | noun: Moldovan(s) adjective: Moldovan | noun: Ukrainian(s) adjective: Ukrainian |
| Ethnic groups | Moldovan 75.1%, Romanian 7%, Ukrainian 6.6%, Gagauz 4.6%, Russian 4.1%, Bulgarian 1.9%, other 0.8% (2014 est.) | Ukrainian 77.8%, Russian 17.3%, Belarusian 0.6%, Moldovan 0.5%, Crimean Tatar 0.5%, Bulgarian 0.4%, Hungarian 0.3%, Romanian 0.3%, Polish 0.3%, Jewish 0.2%, other 1.8% (2001 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS | 14,000 (2020 est.) | 260,000 (2020 est.) |
| Religions | Orthodox 90.1%, other Christian 2.6%, other 0.1%, agnostic <.1%, atheist 0.2%, unspecified 6.9% (2014 est.) | Orthodox (includes the Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OCU), Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church (UAOC), and the Ukrainian Orthodox - Moscow Patriarchate (UOC-MP)), Ukrainian Greek Catholic, Roman Catholic, Protestant, Muslim, Jewish (2013 est.) note: Ukraine's population is overwhelmingly Christian; the vast majority - up to two thirds - identify themselves as Orthodox, but many do not specify a particular branch; the OCU and the UOC-MP each represent less than a quarter of the country's population, the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church accounts for 8-10%, and the UAOC accounts for 1-2%; Muslim and Jewish adherents each compose less than 1% of the total population |
| HIV/AIDS - deaths | <500 (2020 est.) | 3,100 (2020 est.) |
| Languages | Moldovan/Romanian 80.2% (official) (56.7% identify their mother tongue as Moldovan, which is virtually the same as Romanian; 23.5% identify Romanian as their mother tongue), Russian 9.7%, Gagauz 4.2% (a Turkish language), Ukrainian 3.9%, Bulgarian 1.5%, Romani 0.3%, other 0.2% (2014 est.); note - data represent mother tongue major-language sample(s): Cartea informativa a lumii, sursa indispensabila pentru informatii de baza. (Moldovan/Romanian) The World Factbook, the indispensable source for basic information. | Ukrainian (official) 67.5%, Russian (regional language) 29.6%, other (includes small Crimean Tatar-, Moldovan/Romanian-, and Hungarian-speaking minorities) 2.9% (2001 est.); note - in February 2018, the Constitutional Court ruled that 2012 language legislation entitling a language spoken by at least 10% of an oblast's population to be given the status of "regional language" - allowing for its use in courts, schools, and other government institutions - was unconstitutional, thus making the law invalid; Ukrainian remains the country's only official nationwide language major-language sample(s): ??i???? ????? ????i? - ???????? ??????? ??????? ??????????. (Ukrainian) The World Factbook, the indispensable source for basic information. |
| Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 99.4% male: 99.7% female: 99.1% (2015) | definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 99.8% male: 99.8% female: 99.7% (2015) |
| School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education) | total: 11 years male: 11 years female: 12 years (2019) | total: 15 years male: 15 years female: 15 years (2014) |
| Education expenditures | 5.4% of GDP (2018) | 5.4% of GDP (2017) |
| Urbanization | urban population: 43% of total population (2021) rate of urbanization: 0.09% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.) | urban population: 69.8% of total population (2021) rate of urbanization: -0.27% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.) |
| Drinking water source | improved: urban: 98.5% of population rural: 84.6% of population total: 90.5% of population unimproved: urban: 1.5% of population rural: 15.4% of population total: 9.5% of population (2017 est.) | improved: urban: 99.5% of population rural: 100% of population total: 99.4% of population unimproved: urban: 0.5% of population rural: 0% of population total: 0.6% of population (2017 est.) |
| Sanitation facility access | improved: urban: 98.3% of population rural: 78.9% of population total: 87.2% of population unimproved: urban: 1.7% of population rural: 21.1% of population total: 12.8% of population (2017 est.) | improved: urban: 99.4% of population rural: 96.3% of population total: 98.4% of population unimproved: urban: 0.6% of population rural: 3.7% of population total: 1.6% of population (2017 est.) |
| Major cities - population | 494,000 CHISINAU (capital) (2021) | 3.001 million KYIV (capital), 1.426 million Kharkiv, 1.009 million Odesa, 952,000 Dnipropetrovsk, 899,000 Donetsk (2021) |
| Maternal mortality rate | 19 deaths/100,000 live births (2017 est.) | 19 deaths/100,000 live births (2017 est.) |
| Health expenditures | 6.6% (2018) | 7.7% (2018) |
| Physicians density | 3.21 physicians/1,000 population (2017) | 2.99 physicians/1,000 population (2014) |
| Hospital bed density | 5.8 beds/1,000 population (2013) | 7.5 beds/1,000 population (2014) |
| Obesity - adult prevalence rate | 18.9% (2016) | 24.1% (2016) |
| Mother's mean age at first birth | 25.2 years (2019 est.) | 26.2 years (2019 est.) |
| Contraceptive prevalence rate | 56% (2020) | 65.4% (2012) |
| Dependency ratios | total dependency ratio: 39.6 youth dependency ratio: 22.2 elderly dependency ratio: 17.4 potential support ratio: 5.7 (2020 est.) | total dependency ratio: 49.1 youth dependency ratio: 23.8 elderly dependency ratio: 25.3 potential support ratio: 4 (2020 est.) note: data include Crimea |
Government
| Moldova | Ukraine | |
|---|---|---|
| Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Moldova conventional short form: Moldova local long form: Republica Moldova local short form: Moldova former: Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic, Moldovan Soviet Socialist Republic etymology: named for the Moldova River in neighboring eastern Romania | conventional long form: none conventional short form: Ukraine local long form: none local short form: Ukraina former: Ukrainian National Republic, Ukrainian State, Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic etymology: name derives from the Old East Slavic word "ukraina" meaning "borderland or march (militarized border region)" and began to be used extensively in the 19th century; originally Ukrainians referred to themselves as Rusyny (Rusyns, Ruthenians, or Ruthenes), an endonym derived from the medieval Rus state (Kyivan Rus) |
| Government type | parliamentary republic | semi-presidential republic |
| Capital | name: Chisinau in Moldovan (Kishinev in Russian) geographic coordinates: 47 00 N, 28 51 E time difference: 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 note: pronounced KEE-shee-now (KIH-shi-nyov) etymology: origin unclear but may derive from the archaic Romanian word "chisla" ("spring" or "water source") and "noua" ("new") because the original settlement was built at the site of a small spring | name: Kyiv (Kiev) geographic coordinates: 50 26 N, 30 31 E time difference: 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 note: pronounced KAY-yiv etymology: the name is associated with that of Kyi, who along with his brothers Shchek and Khoryv, and their sister Lybid, are the legendary founders of the medieval city of Kyiv; Kyi being the eldest brother, the city was named after him |
| Administrative divisions | 32 raions (raioane, singular - raion), 3 municipalities (municipii, singular - municipiul), 1 autonomous territorial unit (unitatea teritoriala autonoma), and 1 territorial unit (unitatea teritoriala) raions: Anenii Noi, Basarabeasca, Briceni, Cahul, Cantemir, Calarasi, Causeni, Cimislia, Criuleni, Donduseni, Drochia, Dubasari, Edinet, Falesti, Floresti, Glodeni, Hincesti, Ialoveni, Leova, Nisporeni, Ocnita, Orhei, Rezina, Riscani, Singerei, Soldanesti, Soroca, Stefan Voda, Straseni, Taraclia, Telenesti, Ungheni municipalities: Balti, Bender, Chisinau autonomous territorial unit: Gagauzia territorial unit: Stinga Nistrului (Transnistria) | 24 provinces (oblasti, singular - oblast'), 1 autonomous republic* (avtonomna respublika), and 2 municipalities** (mista, singular - misto) with oblast status; Cherkasy, Chernihiv, Chernivtsi, Crimea or Avtonomna Respublika Krym* (Simferopol), Dnipropetrovsk (Dnipro), Donetsk, Ivano-Frankivsk, Kharkiv, Kherson, Khmelnytskyi, Kirovohrad (Kropyvnytskyi), Kyiv**, Kyiv, Luhansk, Lviv, Mykolaiv, Odesa, Poltava, Rivne, Sevastopol**, Sumy, Ternopil, Vinnytsia, Volyn (Lutsk), Zakarpattia (Uzhhorod), Zaporizhzhia, Zhytomyr note: administrative divisions have the same names as their administrative centers (exceptions have the administrative center name following in parentheses); plans include the eventual renaming of Dnipropetrovsk and Kirovohrad oblasts, but because these names are mentioned in the Constitution of Ukraine, the change will require a constitutional amendment note: the US Government does not recognize Russia's illegal annexation of Ukraine's Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the municipality of Sevastopol, nor their redesignation as the "Republic of Crimea" and the "Federal City of Sevastopol" |
| Independence | 27 August 1991 (from the Soviet Union) | 24 August 1991 (from the Soviet Union); notable earlier dates: ca. 982 (VOLODYMYR I consolidates Kyivan Rus); 1199 (Principality (later Kingdom) of Ruthenia formed; 1648 (establishment of the Cossack Hetmanate); 22 January 1918 (from Soviet Russia) |
| National holiday | Independence Day, 27 August (1991) | Independence Day, 24 August (1991); note - 22 January 1918, the day Ukraine first declared its independence from Soviet Russia, and the date the short-lived Western and Greater (Eastern) Ukrainian republics united (1919), is now celebrated as Unity Day |
| Constitution | history: previous 1978; latest adopted 29 July 1994, effective 27 August 1994 amendments: proposed by voter petition (at least 200,000 eligible voters), by at least one third of Parliament members, or by the government; passage requires two-thirds majority vote of Parliament within one year of initial proposal; revisions to constitutional articles on sovereignty, independence, and neutrality require majority vote by referendum; articles on fundamental rights and freedoms cannot be amended; amended many times, last in 2018 | history: several previous; latest adopted and ratified 28 June 1996 amendments: proposed by the president of Ukraine or by at least one third of the Supreme Council members; adoption requires simple majority vote by the Council and at least two-thirds majority vote in its next regular session; adoption of proposals relating to general constitutional principles, elections, and amendment procedures requires two-thirds majority vote by the Council and approval in a referendum; constitutional articles on personal rights and freedoms, national independence, and territorial integrity cannot be amended; amended several times, last in 2019 |
| Legal system | civil law system with Germanic law influences; Constitutional Court review of legislative acts | civil law system; judicial review of legislative acts |
| Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
| Executive branch | chief of state: President Maia SANDU (since 24 December 2020) head of government: Prime Minister Natalia GAVRILITA (since 6 August 2021) cabinet: Cabinet proposed by the prime minister-designate, nominated by the president, approved through a vote of confidence in Parliament elections/appointments: president directly elected for a 4-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held on 15 November 2020 (next to be held in fall 2024); prime minister designated by the president upon consultation with Parliament; within 15 days from designation, the prime minister-designate must request a vote of confidence for his/her proposed work program from the Parliament election results: Maia SANDU elected president; percent of vote (second round results) - Maia SANDU (PAS) 57.7%, Igor DODON (PSRM) 42.3% | chief of state: President Volodymyr ZELENSKYY (since 20 May 2019) head of government: Prime Minister Denys SHMYHAL (since 4 March 2020) cabinet: Cabinet of Ministers nominated by the prime minister, approved by the Verkhovna Rada elections/appointments: president directly elected by absolute majority popular vote in 2 rounds if needed for a 5-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held on 31 March and 21 April 2019 (next to be held in March 2024); prime minister selected by the Verkhovna Rada election results: first round results: percent of vote - Volodymyr ZELENSKYY (Servant of the People) 30.2%, Petro POROSHENKO (BPP-Solidarity) 15.6%, Yuliya TYMOSHENKO (Fatherland) 13.4%, Yuriy BOYKO (Opposition Platform-For Life) 11.7%, 35 other candidates 29.1%; second round results: percent of vote - Volodymyr ZELENSKYY (Servant of the People) 73.2%, Petro POROSHENKO (BPP-Solidarity) 24.5%; Denys SHMYHAL (independent) elected prime minister; Verkhovna Rada vote - 291-59 note: there is also a National Security and Defense Council or NSDC originally created in 1992 as the National Security Council; the NSDC staff is tasked with developing national security policy on domestic and international matters and advising the president; a presidential administration helps draft presidential edicts and provides policy support to the president |
| Legislative branch | description: unicameral Parliament (101 seats; 51 members directly elected in single-seat constituencies by simple majority vote and 50 members directly elected in a single, nationwide constituency by closed party-list proportional representation vote; all members serve 4-year terms elections: last held on 11 July 2021 (next scheduled for July 2025) election results: percent of vote by party - PAS 52.8%, BECS (PSRM+PCRM) 27.1%, SOR 5.7%; seats by party - PAS 63, BECS 32, SOR 6 | description: unicameral Supreme Council or Verkhovna Rada (450 seats; 225 members directly elected in single-seat constituencies by simple majority vote and 225 directly elected in a single nationwide constituency by closed, party-list proportional representation vote; members serve 5-year terms) elections: last held on 21 July 2019 (next to be held in July 2024) election results: percent of vote by party - Servant of the People 43.2%, Opposition Platform-For Life 13.1%, Batkivshchyna 8.2%, European Solidarity 8.1%, Voice 5.8%, other 21.6%; seats by party (preliminary) - Servant of the People 254, Oposition Platform for Life 43, Batkivshchyna 26, European Solidarity 25, Voice 20, Opposition Bloc 6, Samopomich 1, Svoboda 1, other parties 2, independent 46; note - voting not held in Crimea and parts of two Russian-occupied eastern oblasts leaving 26 seats vacant; although this brings the total to 424 elected members (of 450 potential), article 83 of the constitution mandates that a parliamentary majority consists of 226 seats |
| Judicial branch | highest courts: Supreme Court of Justice (consists of the chief judge, 3 deputy-chief judges, 45 judges, and 7 assistant judges); Constitutional Court (consists of the court president and 6 judges); note - the Constitutional Court is autonomous to the other branches of government; the Court interprets the Constitution and reviews the constitutionality of parliamentary laws and decisions, decrees of the president, and acts of the government judge selection and term of office: Supreme Court of Justice judges appointed by the president upon the recommendation of the Superior Council of Magistracy, an 11-member body of judicial officials; all judges serve 4-year renewable terms; Constitutional Court judges appointed 2 each by Parliament, the president, and the Higher Council of Magistracy for 6-year terms; court president elected by other court judges for a 3-year term subordinate courts: Courts of Appeal; Court of Business Audit; municipal courts | highest courts: Supreme Court of Ukraine or SCU (consists of 100 judges, organized into civil, criminal, commercial and administrative chambers, and a grand chamber); Constitutional Court (consists of 18 justices); High Anti-Corruption Court (consists of 39 judges, including 12 in the Appeals Chamber) judge selection and term of office: Supreme Court judges recommended by the High Qualification Commission of Judges (a 16-member state body responsible for judicial candidate testing and assessment and judicial administration), submitted to the High Council of Justice, a 21-member independent body of judicial officials responsible for judicial self-governance and administration, and appointed by the president; judges serve until mandatory retirement at age 65; High Anti-Corruption Court judges are selected by the same process as Supreme Court justices, with one addition - a majority of a combined High Qualification Commission of Judges and a 6-member Public Council of International Experts must vote in favor of potential judges in order to recommend their nomination to the High Council of Justice; this majority must include at least 3 members of the Public Council of International Experts; Constitutional Court justices appointed - 6 each by the president, by the Congress of Judges, and by the Verkhovna Rada; judges serve 9-year nonrenewable terms
subordinate courts: Courts of Appeal; district courts note: specialized courts were abolished as part of Ukraine's judicial reform program; in November 2019, President ZELENSKYY signed a bill on legal reforms |
| Political parties and leaders | represented in Parliament: | Batkivshchyna (Fatherland) [Yuliya TYMOSHENKO] European Solidarity (BPP-Solidarity) [Petro POROSHENKO] Holos (Voice) [Sviatoslav VAKARCHUK] Opposition Bloc or OB [Evgeny MURAYEV] Opposition Platform-For Life [Yuriy BOYKO, Vadim RABINOVICH] Radical Party [Oleh LYASHKO] Samopomich (Self Reliance) [Andriy SADOVYY] Servant of the People [Oleksandr KORNIENKO] Svoboda (Freedom) [Oleh TYAHNYBOK] |
| International organization participation | BSEC, CD, CE, CEI, CIS, EAEC (observer), EAPC, EBRD, FAO, GCTU, GUAM, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC (NGOs), ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITU, ITUC (NGOs), MIGA, OIF, OPCW, OSCE, PFP, SELEC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, Union Latina, UNMIL, UNMISS, UNOCI, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO | Australia Group, BSEC, CBSS (observer), CD, CE, CEI, CICA (observer), CIS (participating member, has not signed the 1993 CIS charter), EAEC (observer), EAPC, EBRD, FAO, GCTU, GUAM, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC (national committees), ICRM, IDA, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), LAIA (observer), MIGA, MONUSCO, NAM (observer), NSG, OAS (observer), OIF (observer), OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, SELEC (observer), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNFICYP, UNIDO, UNISFA, UNMIL, UNMISS, UNOCI, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC |
| Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Eugen CARAS (since 17 July 2020) chancery: 2101 S Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 667-1130 FAX: [1] (202) 667-2624 email address and website: washington@mfa.gov.md https://sua.mfa.gov.md/en | chief of mission: Ambassador Oksana Serhiyivna MARKAROVA (since 7 July 2021) chancery: 3350 M Street NW, Washington, DC 20007 telephone: [1] (202) 349-2963 FAX: [1] (202) 333-0817 email address and website: emb_us@mfa.gov.ua; consul_us@mfa.gov.ua https://usa.mfa.gov.ua/en consulate(s) general: Chicago, New York, San Francisco |
| Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Laura HRUBY (since 21 July 2021) embassy: 103 Mateevici Street, Chisinau MD-2009 mailing address: 7080 Chisinau Place, Washington DC 20521-7080 telephone: [373] (22) 408-300 FAX: [373] (22) 233-044 email address and website: ChisinauACS@state.gov https://md.usembassy.gov/ | chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Kristina KVIEN (since January 2020) embassy: 4 A. I. Igor Sikorsky Street, 04112 Kyiv mailing address: 5850 Kyiv Place, Washington, DC 20521-5850 telephone: [380] (44) 521-5000 FAX: [380] (44) 521-5544 email address and website: kyivacs@state.gov https://ua.usembassy.gov/ |
| Flag description | three equal vertical bands of Prussian blue (hoist side), chrome yellow, and vermilion red; emblem in center of flag is of a Roman eagle of dark gold (brown) outlined in black with a red beak and talons carrying a yellow cross in its beak and a green olive branch in its right talons and a yellow scepter in its left talons; on its breast is a shield divided horizontally red over blue with a stylized aurochs head, star, rose, and crescent all in black-outlined yellow; based on the color scheme of the flag of Romania - with which Moldova shares a history and culture - but Moldova's blue band is lighter; the reverse of the flag displays a mirrored image of the coat of arms note: one of only three national flags that differ on their obverse and reverse sides - the others are Paraguay and Saudi Arabia | two equal horizontal bands of azure (top) and golden yellow; although the colors date back to medieval heraldry, in modern times they are sometimes claimed to represent grain fields under a blue sky |
| National anthem | name: "Limba noastra" (Our Language) lyrics/music: Alexei MATEEVICI/Alexandru CRISTEA note: adopted 1994 | name: "Shche ne vmerla Ukraina" (Ukraine Has Not Yet Perished) lyrics/music: Paul CHUBYNSKYI/Mikhail VERBYTSKYI note: music adopted 1991, lyrics adopted 2003; song first performed in 1864 at the Ukraine Theatre in Lviv; the lyrics, originally written in 1862, were revised in 2003 |
| International law organization participation | has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; accepts ICCt jurisdiction | has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; non-party state to the ICCt |
| National symbol(s) | aurochs (a type of wild cattle); national colors: blue, yellow, red | tryzub (trident); national colors: blue, yellow |
| Citizenship | citizenship by birth: no citizenship by descent only: at least one parent must be a citizen of Moldova dual citizenship recognized: no residency requirement for naturalization: 10 years | citizenship by birth: no citizenship by descent only: at least one parent must be a citizen of Ukraine dual citizenship recognized: no residency requirement for naturalization: 5 years |
Economy
| Moldova | Ukraine | |
|---|---|---|
| Economy - overview | Despite recent progress, Moldova remains one of the poorest countries in Europe. With a moderate climate and productive farmland, Moldova's economy relies heavily on its agriculture sector, featuring fruits, vegetables, wine, wheat, and tobacco. Moldova also depends on annual remittances of about $1.2 billion - almost 15% of GDP - from the roughly one million Moldovans working in Europe, Israel, Russia, and elsewhere. With few natural energy resources, Moldova imports almost all of its energy supplies from Russia and Ukraine. Moldova's dependence on Russian energy is underscored by a more than $6 billion debt to Russian natural gas supplier Gazprom, largely the result of unreimbursed natural gas consumption in the breakaway region of Transnistria. Moldova and Romania inaugurated the Ungheni-Iasi natural gas interconnector project in August 2014. The 43-kilometer pipeline between Moldova and Romania, allows for both the import and export of natural gas. Several technical and regulatory delays kept gas from flowing into Moldova until March 2015. Romanian gas exports to Moldova are largely symbolic. In 2018, Moldova awarded a tender to Romanian Transgaz to construct a pipeline connecting Ungheni to Chisinau, bringing the gas to Moldovan population centers. Moldova also seeks to connect with the European power grid by 2022. The government's stated goal of EU integration has resulted in some market-oriented progress. Moldova experienced better than expected economic growth in 2017, largely driven by increased consumption, increased revenue from agricultural exports, and improved tax collection. During fall 2014, Moldova signed an Association Agreement and a Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Agreement with the EU (AA/DCFTA), connecting Moldovan products to the world's largest market. The EU AA/DCFTA has contributed to significant growth in Moldova's exports to the EU. In 2017, the EU purchased over 65% of Moldova's exports, a major change from 20 years previously when the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) received over 69% of Moldova's exports. A $1 billion asset-stripping heist of Moldovan banks in late 2014 delivered a significant shock to the economy in 2015; the subsequent bank bailout increased inflationary pressures and contributed to the depreciation of the leu and a minor recession. Moldova's growth has also been hampered by endemic corruption, which limits business growth and deters foreign investment, and Russian restrictions on imports of Moldova's agricultural products. The government's push to restore stability and implement meaningful reform led to the approval in 2016 of a $179 million three-year IMF program focused on improving the banking and fiscal environments, along with additional assistance programs from the EU, World Bank, and Romania. Moldova received two IMF tranches in 2017, totaling over $42.5 million. Over the longer term, Moldova's economy remains vulnerable to corruption, political uncertainty, weak administrative capacity, vested bureaucratic interests, energy import dependence, Russian political and economic pressure, heavy dependence on agricultural exports, and unresolved separatism in Moldova's Transnistria region. | After Russia, the Ukrainian Republic was the most important economic component of the former Soviet Union, producing about four times the output of the next-ranking republic. Its fertile black soil accounted for more than one fourth of Soviet agricultural output, and its farms provided substantial quantities of meat, milk, grain, and vegetables to other republics. Likewise, its diversified heavy industry supplied unique equipment such as large diameter pipes and vertical drilling apparatus, and raw materials to industrial and mining sites in other regions of the former USSR.
Shortly after independence in August 1991, the Ukrainian Government liberalized most prices and erected a legal framework for privatization, but widespread resistance to reform within the government and the legislature soon stalled reform efforts and led to some backtracking. Output by 1999 had fallen to less than 40% of the 1991 level. Outside institutions - particularly the IMF encouraged Ukraine to quicken the pace and scope of reforms to foster economic growth. Ukrainian Government officials eliminated most tax and customs privileges in a March 2005 budget law, bringing more economic activity out of Ukraine's large shadow economy. From 2000 until mid-2008, Ukraine's economy was buoyant despite political turmoil between the prime minister and president. The economy contracted nearly 15% in 2009, among the worst economic performances in the world. In April 2010, Ukraine negotiated a price discount on Russian gas imports in exchange for extending Russia's lease on its naval base in Crimea.
Ukraine's oligarch-dominated economy grew slowly from 2010 to 2013 but remained behind peers in the region and among Europe's poorest. After former President YANUKOVYCH fled the country during the Revolution of Dignity, Ukraine's economy fell into crisis because of Russia's annexation of Crimea, military conflict in the eastern part of the country, and a trade war with Russia, resulting in a 17% decline in GDP, inflation at nearly 60%, and dwindling foreign currency reserves. The international community began efforts to stabilize the Ukrainian economy, including a March 2014 IMF assistance package of $17.5 billion, of which Ukraine has received four disbursements, most recently in April 2017, bringing the total disbursed as of that date to approximately $8.4 billion. Ukraine has made progress on reforms designed to make the country prosperous, democratic, and transparent, including creation of a national anti-corruption agency, overhaul of the banking sector, establishment of a transparent VAT refund system, and increased transparency in government procurement. But more improvements are needed, including fighting corruption, developing capital markets, improving the business environment to attract foreign investment, privatizing state-owned enterprises, and land reform. The fifth tranche of the IMF program, valued at $1.9 billion, was delayed in mid-2017 due to lack of progress on outstanding reforms, including adjustment of gas tariffs to import parity levels and adoption of legislation establishing an independent anti-corruption court.
Russia's occupation of Crimea in March 2014 and ongoing Russian aggression in eastern Ukraine have hurt economic growth. With the loss of a major portion of Ukraine's heavy industry in Donbas and ongoing violence, the economy contracted by 6.6% in 2014 and by 9.8% in 2015, but it returned to low growth in in 2016 and 2017, reaching 2.3% and 2.0%, respectively, as key reforms took hold. Ukraine also redirected trade activity towards the EU following the implementation of a bilateral Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Agreement, displacing Russia as its largest trading partner. A prohibition on commercial trade with separatist-controlled territories in early 2017 has not impacted Ukraine's key industrial sectors as much as expected, largely because of favorable external conditions. Ukraine returned to international debt markets in September 2017, issuing a $3 billion sovereign bond. |
| GDP (purchasing power parity) | $34.68 billion (2019 est.) $33.482 billion (2018 est.) $32.101 billion (2017 est.) note: data are in 2010 dollars | $538.388 billion (2019 est.) $521.524 billion (2018 est.) $504.35 billion (2017 est.) note: data are in 2010 dollars |
| GDP - real growth rate | 4.5% (2017 est.) 4.3% (2016 est.) -0.4% (2015 est.) | 3.24% (2019 est.) 3.41% (2018 est.) 2.48% (2017 est.) |
| GDP - per capita (PPP) | $13,050 (2019 est.) $12,373 (2018 est.) $11,651 (2017 est.) note: data are in 2010 dollars | $12,810 (2019 est.) $12,338 (2018 est.) $11,871 (2017 est.) note: data are in 2010 dollars |
| GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 17.7% (2017 est.) industry: 20.3% (2017 est.) services: 62% (2017 est.) | agriculture: 12.2% (2017 est.) industry: 28.6% (2017 est.) services: 60% (2017 est.) |
| Population below poverty line | 7.3% (2018 est.) | 1.1% (2019 est.) |
| Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 4.2% highest 10%: 22.1% (2014 est.) | lowest 10%: 4.2% highest 10%: 21.6% (2015 est.) |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 4.8% (2019 est.) 3% (2018 est.) 6.5% (2017 est.) | 7.9% (2019 est.) 11% (2018 est.) 14.4% (2017 est.) note: Excluding the temporarily occupied territories of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea, the city of Sevastopol and part of the anti-terrorist operation zone |
| Labor force | 1.295 million (2017 est.) | 16.033 million (2017 est.) |
| Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 32.3% industry: 12% services: 55.7% (2017 est.) | agriculture: 5.8% industry: 26.5% services: 67.8% (2014) |
| Unemployment rate | 4.99% (2019 est.) 3.16% (2018 est.) | 8.89% (2019 est.) 9.42% (2018 est.) note: officially registered workers; large number of unregistered or underemployed workers |
| Distribution of family income - Gini index | 25.7 (2018 est.) 26.8 (2014 est.) | 26.1 (2018 est.) 28.2 (2009) |
| Budget | revenues: 2.886 billion (2017 est.) expenditures: 2.947 billion (2017 est.) note: National Public Budget | revenues: 29.82 billion (2017 est.) expenditures: 31.55 billion (2017 est.) note: this is the planned, consolidated budget |
| Industries | sugar processing, vegetable oil, food processing, agricultural machinery; foundry equipment, refrigerators and freezers, washing machines; hosiery, shoes, textiles | coal, electric power, ferrous and nonferrous metals, machinery and transport equipment, chemicals, food processing |
| Industrial production growth rate | 3% (2017 est.) | 3.1% (2017 est.) |
| Agriculture - products | maize, wheat, sunflower seed, grapes, apples, sugar beet, milk, potatoes, barley, plums/sloes | maize, wheat, potatoes, sunflower seed, sugar beet, milk, barley, soybeans, rapeseed, tomatoes |
| Exports | $3.985 billion (2019 est.) $3.826 billion (2018 est.) $3.57 billion (2017 est.) | $161.231 billion (2019 est.) $151.075 billion (2018 est.) $153.046 billion (2017 est.) |
| Exports - commodities | insulated wiring, sunflower seeds, wine, corn, seats (2019) | corn, sunflower seed oils, iron and iron products, wheat, insulated wiring, rapeseed (2019) |
| Exports - partners | Romania 27%, Russia 9%, Italy 9%, Germany 9%, Turkey 6%, Poland 5% (2019) | Russia 9%, China 8%, Germany 6%, Poland 6%, Italy 5%, Turkey 5% (2019) |
| Imports | $7.113 billion (2019 est.) $6.765 billion (2018 est.) $6.165 billion (2017 est.) | $207.335 billion (2019 est.) $195.071 billion (2018 est.) $189.402 billion (2017 est.) |
| Imports - commodities | refined petroleum, cars, insulated wiring, packaged medicines, broadcasting equipment (2019) | refined petroleum, cars, packaged medicines, coal, natural gas (2019) |
| Imports - partners | Romania 20%, Russia 10%, Ukraine 9%, Germany 8%, China 7%, Turkey 6%, Italy 6% (2019) | China 13%, Russia 12%, Germany 10%, Poland 9%, Belarus 7% (2019) |
| Debt - external | $7.232 billion (2019 est.) $7.16 billion (2018 est.) | $117.41 billion (2019 est.) $114.449 billion (2018 est.) |
| Exchange rates | Moldovan lei (MDL) per US dollar - 18.49 (2017 est.) 19.924 (2016 est.) 19.924 (2015 est.) 19.83 (2014 est.) 14.036 (2013 est.) | hryvnia (UAH) per US dollar - 28.10001 (2020 est.) 23.7 (2019 est.) 27.80499 (2018 est.) 21.8447 (2014 est.) 11.8867 (2013 est.) |
| Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
| Public debt | 31.5% of GDP (2017 est.) 35.8% of GDP (2016 est.) | 71% of GDP (2017 est.) 81.2% of GDP (2016 est.) note: the total public debt of $64.5 billion consists of: domestic public debt ($23.8 billion); external public debt ($26.1 billion); and sovereign guarantees ($14.6 billion) |
| Reserves of foreign exchange and gold | $2.803 billion (31 December 2017 est.) $2.206 billion (31 December 2016 est.) | $18.81 billion (31 December 2017 est.) $15.54 billion (31 December 2016 est.) |
| Current Account Balance | -$602 million (2017 est.) -$268 million (2016 est.) | -$4.124 billion (2019 est.) -$6.432 billion (2018 est.) |
| GDP (official exchange rate) | $11.982 billion (2019 est.) | $155.082 billion (2019 est.) |
| Credit ratings | Moody's rating: B3 (2010) | Fitch rating: B (2019) Moody's rating: B3 (2020) Standard & Poors rating: B (2019) |
| Ease of Doing Business Index scores | Overall score: 74.4 (2020) Starting a Business score: 95.7 (2020) Trading score: 92.3 (2020) Enforcement score: 63.6 (2020) | Overall score: 70.2 (2020) Starting a Business score: 91.1 (2020) Trading score: 80.1 (2020) Enforcement score: 63.6 (2020) |
| Taxes and other revenues | 30.2% (of GDP) (2017 est.) | 26.6% (of GDP) (2017 est.) |
| Budget surplus (+) or deficit (-) | -0.6% (of GDP) (2017 est.) | -1.5% (of GDP) (2017 est.) |
| Unemployment, youth ages 15-24 | total: 10.4% male: 11.1% female: 9.4% (2019 est.) | total: 15.4% male: 15.5% female: 15.3% (2019 est.) |
| GDP - composition, by end use | household consumption: 85.8% (2017 est.) government consumption: 19% (2017 est.) investment in fixed capital: 21.9% (2017 est.) investment in inventories: 1.4% (2017 est.) exports of goods and services: 42.5% (2017 est.) imports of goods and services: -70.7% (2017 est.) | household consumption: 66.5% (2017 est.) government consumption: 20.4% (2017 est.) investment in fixed capital: 16% (2017 est.) investment in inventories: 4.7% (2017 est.) exports of goods and services: 47.9% (2017 est.) imports of goods and services: -55.6% (2017 est.) |
| Gross national saving | 16.8% of GDP (2019 est.) 15.1% of GDP (2018 est.) 16.8% of GDP (2017 est.) | 12.1% of GDP (2019 est.) 15.2% of GDP (2018 est.) 17.8% of GDP (2017 est.) |
Energy
| Moldova | Ukraine | |
|---|---|---|
| Electricity - production | 5.49 billion kWh (2016 est.) | 153.6 billion kWh (2016 est.) |
| Electricity - consumption | 4.4 billion kWh (2016 est.) | 133.2 billion kWh (2016 est.) |
| Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2016 est.) | 3.591 billion kWh (2015 est.) |
| Electricity - imports | 4 million kWh (2016 est.) | 77 million kWh (2016 est.) |
| Oil - production | 0 bbl/day (2018 est.) | 32,000 bbl/day (2018 est.) |
| Oil - imports | 20 bbl/day (2015 est.) | 4,720 bbl/day (2015 est.) |
| Oil - exports | 0 bbl/day (2015 est.) | 413 bbl/day (2015 est.) |
| Oil - proved reserves | 0 bbl (1 January 2018 est.) | 395 million bbl (1 January 2018 est.) |
| Natural gas - proved reserves | NA cu m (1 January 2017 est.) | 1.104 trillion cu m (1 January 2018 est.) |
| Natural gas - production | 11.33 million cu m (2017 est.) | 19.73 billion cu m (2017 est.) |
| Natural gas - consumption | 2.52 billion cu m (2017 est.) note: excludes breakaway Transnistria | 30.92 billion cu m (2017 est.) |
| Natural gas - exports | 0 cu m (2017 est.) | 0 cu m (2017 est.) |
| Natural gas - imports | 2.52 billion cu m (2017 est.) note: excludes breakaway Transnistria | 12.97 billion cu m (2017 est.) |
| Electricity - installed generating capacity | 515,000 kW (2016 est.) note: excludes Transnistria | 57.28 million kW (2016 est.) |
| Electricity - from fossil fuels | 86% of total installed capacity (2016 est.) | 65% of total installed capacity (2016 est.) |
| Electricity - from hydroelectric plants | 12% of total installed capacity (2017 est.) | 8% of total installed capacity (2017 est.) |
| Electricity - from nuclear fuels | 0% of total installed capacity (2017 est.) | 23% of total installed capacity (2017 est.) |
| Electricity - from other renewable sources | 2% of total installed capacity (2017 est.) | 3% of total installed capacity (2017 est.) |
| Refined petroleum products - production | 232 bbl/day (2015 est.) | 63,670 bbl/day (2017 est.) |
| Refined petroleum products - consumption | 18,000 bbl/day (2016 est.) | 233,000 bbl/day (2016 est.) |
| Refined petroleum products - exports | 275 bbl/day (2015 est.) | 1,828 bbl/day (2015 est.) |
| Refined petroleum products - imports | 18,160 bbl/day (2015 est.) | 167,000 bbl/day (2015 est.) |
| Electricity access | electrification - total population: 100% (2020) | electrification - total population: 100% (2020) |
Telecommunications
| Moldova | Ukraine | |
|---|---|---|
| Telephones - main lines in use | total subscriptions: 1,071,514 subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 31.55 (2019 est.) | total subscriptions: 4,182,994 subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 9.52 (2019 est.) |
| Telephones - mobile cellular | total subscriptions: 3,613,846 subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 106.4 (2019 est.) | total subscriptions: 54,842,940 subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 124.78 (2019 est.) |
| Internet country code | .md | .ua |
| Internet users | total: 2,616,792 percent of population: 76.12% (July 2018 est.) | total: 25,883,509 percent of population: 58.89% (July 2018 est.) |
| Telecommunication systems | general assessment: high unemployment and economic pressures have reduced consumer spending in telecom market; endeavors to join the EU have promoted regulatory issues in line with EU standards; mobile market extended outside of cities and across most of the country; LTE services available; market is competitive, fiber accounts for 62% of all fixed broadband connections and most telecom revenue is from the mobile market; importer of broadcasting equipment from China (2021) (2020)domestic: competition among mobile telephone providers has spurred subscriptions; little interest in expanding fixed-line service 27 per 100; mobile-cellular teledensity sits at 89 per 100 persons (2019) international: country code - 373; service through Romania and Russia via landline; satellite earth stations - at least 3 - Intelsat, Eutelsat, and Intersputnik note: the COVID-19 pandemic continues to have a significant impact on production and supply chains globally; since 2020, some aspects of the telecom sector have experienced downturn, particularly in mobile device production; many network operators delayed upgrades to infrastructure; progress towards 5G implementation was postponed or slowed in some countries; consumer spending on telecom services and devices was affected by large-scale job losses and the consequent restriction on disposable incomes; the crucial nature of telecom services as a tool for work and school from home became evident, and received some support from governments | general assessment: Ukraine's telecom market continues to face challenges resulting from the annexation of Crimea by Russia and unrest in eastern regions; developing telecom market has attracted international investors from Russia, Turkey, and Azerbaijan; government plan emphasizes improvement of domestic trunk lines, international connections, and a national mobile-cellular system; operators moving from 3G services to 4G, but some areas still use 2G; LTE services available in cities; FttP networks taking over DSL platforms; government approved plan in 2020 for 5G migration and operator is developing IoT capabilities; improvement of licensing requirements for operators and positive reforms for users; importer of broadcasting equipment from China (2021) (2020)domestic: fixed-line teledensity is 10 per 100; the mobile-cellular telephone system's expansion has slowed, largely due to saturation of the market that is now 131 mobile phones per 100 persons (2019) international: country code - 380; landing point for the Kerch Strait Cable connecting Ukraine to Russia; 2 new domestic trunk lines are a part of the fiber-optic TAE system and 3 Ukrainian links have been installed in the fiber-optic TEL project that connects 18 countries; additional international service is provided by the Italy-Turkey-Ukraine-Russia (ITUR) fiber-optic submarine cable and by an unknown number of earth stations in the Intelsat, Inmarsat, and Intersputnik satellite systems note: the COVID-19 pandemic continues to have a significant impact on production and supply chains globally; since 2020, some aspects of the telecom sector have experienced downturn, particularly in mobile device production; many network operators delayed upgrades to infrastructure; progress towards 5G implementation was postponed or slowed in some countries; consumer spending on telecom services and devices was affected by large-scale job losses and the consequent restriction on disposable incomes; the crucial nature of telecom services as a tool for work and school from home became evident, and received some support from governments |
| Broadband - fixed subscriptions | total: 670,530 subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 19.74 (2019 est.) | total: 6,784,185 subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 15.44 (2019 est.) |
| Broadcast media | state-owned national radio-TV broadcaster operates 1 TV and 1 radio station; a total of nearly 70 terrestrial TV channels and some 50 radio stations are in operation; Russian and Romanian channels also are available (2019) | Ukraine's media landscape is dominated by oligarch-owned news outlets, which are often politically motivated and at odds with one another and/or the government; while polls suggest most Ukrainians still receive news from traditional media sources, social media is a crucial component of information dissemination in Ukraine; almost all Ukrainian politicians and opinion leaders communicate with the public via social media and maintain at least one social media page, if not more; this allows them direct communication with audiences, and news often breaks on Facebook or Twitter before being picked up by traditional news outlets Ukraine television serves as the principal source of news; the largest national networks are controlled by oligarchs: TRK Ukraina is owned by Rinat Akhmetov; Studio 1+1 is owned by Ihor Kolomoyskyy; Inter is owned by Dmytro Firtash and Serhiy Lyovochkin; and StarlightMedia channels (ICTV, STB, and Novyi Kanal) are owned by Victor Pinchuk; a set of 24-hour news channels also have clear political affiliations: 112-Ukraine and NewsOne tacitly support pro-Russian opposition and are believed to be controlled by political and business tycoon Viktor Medvedchuk; pro-Ukrainian government Channel 5 and Pryamyi are linked to President Petro Poroshenko; 24 and ZIK are owned by opposition, but not pro-Russian, politicians; UA: Suspilne is a public television station under the umbrella of the National Public Broadcasting Company of Ukraine; while it is often praised by media experts for balanced coverage, it lags in popularity; Ukrainian Radio, institutionally linked to UA: Suspilne, is one of only two national talk radio networks, with the other being the privately owned Radio NV (2019) |
Transportation
| Moldova | Ukraine | |
|---|---|---|
| Railways | total: 1,171 km (2014) standard gauge: 14 km 1.435-m gauge (2014) broad gauge: 1,157 km 1.520-m gauge (2014) | total: 21,733 km (2014) standard gauge: 49 km 1.435-m gauge (49 km electrified) (2014) broad gauge: 21,684 km 1.524-m gauge (9,250 km electrified) (2014) |
| Roadways | total: 9,352 km (2012) paved: 8,835 km (2012) unpaved: 517 km (2012) | total: 169,694 km (2012) paved: 166,095 km (includes 17 km of expressways) (2012) unpaved: 3,599 km (2012) |
| Waterways | 558 km (in public use on Danube, Dniester and Prut Rivers) (2011) | 1,672 km (most on Dnieper River) (2012) |
| Pipelines | 1916 km gas (2014) | 36720 km gas, 4514 km oil, 4363 km refined products (2013) |
| Merchant marine | total: 127 by type: bulk carrier 5, container ship 5, general cargo 84, oil tanker 8, other 25 (2020) | total: 409 by type: container ship 1, general cargo 85, oil tanker 15, other 308 (2020) |
| Airports | total: 7 (2013) | total: 187 (2013) |
| Airports - with paved runways | total: 5 (2017) over 3,047 m: 1 (2017) 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 (2017) 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 (2017) | total: 108 (2013) over 3,047 m: 13 (2013) 2,438 to 3,047 m: 42 (2013) 1,524 to 2,437 m: 22 (2013) 914 to 1,523 m: 3 (2013) under 914 m: 28 (2013) |
| Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 2 (2013) 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2013) under 914 m: 1 (2013) | total: 79 (2013) 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 (2013) 914 to 1,523 m: 5 (2013) under 914 m: 69 (2013) |
| National air transport system | number of registered air carriers: 6 (2020) inventory of registered aircraft operated by air carriers: 21 annual passenger traffic on registered air carriers: 1,135,999 (2018) annual freight traffic on registered air carriers: 640,000 mt-km (2018) | number of registered air carriers: 14 (2020) inventory of registered aircraft operated by air carriers: 126 annual passenger traffic on registered air carriers: 7,854,842 (2018) annual freight traffic on registered air carriers: 75.26 million mt-km (2018) |
| Civil aircraft registration country code prefix | ER | UR |
Military
| Moldova | Ukraine | |
|---|---|---|
| Military branches | National Army: Land Forces (Fortele Terestre ale Republicii Moldova, FTRM); Air Forces (Fortele Aeriene ale Republicii Moldova, FARM); Carabinieri Troops (a component of the Ministry of Internal Affairs that also has official status as a service of the Armed Forces during wartime) (2021) | Armed Forces of Ukraine (Zbroyni Syly Ukrayiny, ZSU): Ground Forces (Sukhoputni Viys'ka), Naval Forces (Viys'kovo-Mors'ki Syly, VMS), Air Forces (Povitryani Syly, PS), Air Assault Forces (Desantno-shturmovi Viyska, DShV), Ukrainian Special Operations Forces (UASOF), Territorial Defense Forces (Reserves); Ministry of Internal Affairs: National Guard of Ukraine, State Border Guard Service of Ukraine (includes Maritime Border Guard) (2021) |
| Military service age and obligation | 18-27 years of age for compulsory or voluntary military service; male registration required at age 16; 1-year service obligation (2019) note: Moldova intends to abolish military conscription by 2021 | conscription abolished in 2012, but reintroduced in 2014; 20-27 years of age for compulsory military service; conscript service obligation is 12 months (2019) |
| Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 0.4% of GDP (2020 est.) 0.4% of GDP (2019) 0.4% of GDP (2018) 0.4% of GDP (2017) 0.4% of GDP (2016) | 3% of GDP (2020 est.) 3.9% of GDP (2019) 3.7% of GDP (2018) 3.1% of GDP (2017) 3.6% of GDP (2016) |
| Military and security service personnel strengths | the Moldovan National Army has approximately 6,000 active troops (2020) | information varies; approximately 200,000 active troops (150,000 Army, including Airborne/Air Assault Forces; 12,000 Navy; 40,000 Air Force); approximately 50,000 National Guard (2020) |
| Military equipment inventories and acquisitions | the Moldovan military's inventory is limited and almost entirely comprised of older Russian and Soviet-era equipment; since 2000, it has received small amounts of donated material from other nations, including the US (2020) | the Ukrainian military is equipped mostly with older Russian and Soviet-era weapons systems; since 2010, it has imported limited quantities of weapons from several European countries, as well as Canada, the US, and the United Arab Emirates; Ukraine has a broad defense industry capable of building Soviet-era land systems and maintaining and upgrading Soviet-era combat aircraft, as well as missile and air defense systems (2020) |
Transnational Issues
| Moldova | Ukraine | |
|---|---|---|
| Disputes - international | Moldova and Ukraine operate joint customs posts to monitor the transit of people and commodities through Moldova's break-away Transnistria region, which remains under the auspices of an Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe-mandated peacekeeping mission comprised of Moldovan, Transnistrian, Russian, and Ukrainian troops | 1997 boundary delimitation treaty with Belarus remains unratified due to unresolved financial claims, stalling demarcation and reducing border security; delimitation of land boundary with Russia is complete and demarcation began in 2012; the dispute over the boundary between Russia and Ukraine through the Kerch Strait and Sea of Azov is suspended due to the occupation of Crimea by Russia; Ukraine and Moldova signed an agreement officially delimiting their border in 1999, but the border has not been demarcated due to Moldova's difficulties with the break-away region of Transnistria; Moldova and Ukraine operate joint customs posts to monitor transit of people and commodities through Moldova's Transnistria Region, which remains under the auspices of an Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe-mandated peacekeeping mission comprised of Moldovan, Transnistrian, Russian, and Ukrainian troops; the ICJ ruled largely in favor of Romania in its dispute submitted in 2004 over Ukrainian-administered Zmiyinyy/Serpilor (Snake) Island and Black Sea maritime boundary delimitation; Romania opposes Ukraine's reopening of a navigation canal from the Danube border through Ukraine to the Black Sea |
| Illicit drugs | limited cultivation of opium poppy and cannabis, mostly for CIS consumption; transshipment point for illicit drugs from Southwest Asia via Central Asia to Russia, Western Europe, and possibly the US; widespread crime and underground economic activity | limited cultivation of cannabis and opium poppy, mostly for CIS consumption; some synthetic drug production for export to the West; limited government eradication program; used as transshipment point for opiates and other illicit drugs from Africa, Latin America, and Turkey to Europe and Russia; Ukraine has improved anti-money-laundering controls, resulting in its removal from the Financial Action Task Force's (FATF's) Noncooperative Countries and Territories List in February 2004; Ukraine's anti-money-laundering regime continues to be monitored by FATF |
| Refugees and internally displaced persons | refugees (country of origin): 6,779 applicants for forms of legal stay other than asylum (Ukraine) (2015) stateless persons: 3,405 (2020) | IDPs: 734,000 (Russian-sponsored separatist violence in Crimea and eastern Ukraine) (2020) stateless persons: 35,875 (2020); note - citizens of the former USSR who were permanently resident in Ukraine were granted citizenship upon Ukraine's independence in 1991, but some missed this window of opportunity; people arriving after 1991, Crimean Tatars, ethnic Koreans, people with expired Soviet passports, and people with no documents have difficulty acquiring Ukrainian citizenship; following the fall of the Soviet Union in 1989, thousands of Crimean Tatars and their descendants deported from Ukraine under the STALIN regime returned to their homeland, some being stateless and others holding the citizenship of Uzbekistan or other former Soviet republics; a 1998 bilateral agreement between Ukraine and Uzbekistan simplified the process of renouncing Uzbek citizenship and obtaining Ukrainian citizenship |
Environment
| Moldova | Ukraine | |
|---|---|---|
| Air pollutants | particulate matter emissions: 15.97 micrograms per cubic meter (2016 est.) carbon dioxide emissions: 5.12 megatons (2016 est.) methane emissions: 3.29 megatons (2020 est.) | particulate matter emissions: 18.29 micrograms per cubic meter (2016 est.) carbon dioxide emissions: 202.25 megatons (2016 est.) methane emissions: 63.37 megatons (2020 est.) |
| Total water withdrawal | municipal: 148 million cubic meters (2017 est.) industrial: 650 million cubic meters (2017 est.) agricultural: 42 million cubic meters (2017 est.) | municipal: 2.397 billion cubic meters (2017 est.) industrial: 3.577 billion cubic meters (2017 est.) agricultural: 3.206 billion cubic meters (2017 est.) |
| Revenue from forest resources | forest revenues: 0.26% of GDP (2018 est.) | forest revenues: 0.34% of GDP (2018 est.) |
| Revenue from coal | coal revenues: 0% of GDP (2018 est.) | coal revenues: 0.42% of GDP (2018 est.) |
| Waste and recycling | municipal solid waste generated annually: 3,981,200 tons (2015 est.) municipal solid waste recycled annually: 609,920 tons (2015 est.) percent of municipal solid waste recycled: 15.3% (2015 est.) | municipal solid waste generated annually: 15,242,025 tons (2016 est.) municipal solid waste recycled annually: 487,745 tons (2015 est.) percent of municipal solid waste recycled: 3.2% (2015 est.) |
Source: CIA Factbook
