Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...

has formal relations with many nations and in recent decades has been establishing diplomatic relations with an expanding circle of nations. The foreign relations of Ukraine are guided by a number of key priorities outlined in the

foreign policy of Ukraine The foreign policy of Ukraine is the strategic approach Ukraine takes to its relations with foreign nations, cooperation with international organizations, promotion of its national interests and protection of the rights of its citizens and diasp ...

Western relations

considers Euro-Atlantic integration its primary foreign policy objective, but in practice balances its relationship with Europe and the United States with strong ties to Russia. The

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been de ...

's Partnership and Cooperation Agreement (PCA) with Ukraine went into force on March 1, 1998. The European Union (EU) has encouraged Ukraine to implement the PCA fully before discussions begin on an association agreement. The EU Common Strategy toward Ukraine, issued at the EU Summit in December 1999 in

Helsinki Helsinki ( or ; ; sv, Helsingfors, ) is the capital, primate, and most populous city of Finland. Located on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, it is the seat of the region of Uusimaa in southern Finland, and has a population of . The city ...

, recognizes Ukraine's long-term aspirations but does not discuss association.Ukraine makes it official: Nation will abandon plans to join NATO

Kyiv Post The ''Kyiv Post'' is the oldest English-language newspaper in Ukraine, founded in October 1995 by Jed Sunden. History American Jed Sunden founded the ''Kyiv Post'' weekly newspaper on Oct. 18, 1995 and later created KP Media for his holdings. ...

(May 28, 2010) On January 31, 1992, Ukraine joined the then-Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe (now the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe—OSCE), and on March 10, 1992, it became a member of the North Atlantic Cooperation Council. Ukraine also has a close relationship with

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...

and has declared interest in eventual membership. It is the most active member of the

Partnership for Peace The Partnership for Peace (PfP; french: Partenariat pour la paix) is a North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) program aimed at creating trust between the member states of NATO and other states mostly in Europe, including post-Soviet state ...

(PfP). Former President

Viktor Yushchenko Viktor Andriyovych Yushchenko ( uk, Віктор Андрійович Ющенко, ; born 23 February 1954) is a Ukrainian politician who was the third president of Ukraine from 23 January 2005 to 25 February 2010. As an informal leader of th ...

indicated that he supports Ukraine joining the EU in the future. Plans for Ukrainian membership to NATO were shelved by Ukraine following the 2010 Ukrainian presidential election in which

Viktor Yanukovych Viktor Fedorovych Yanukovych ( uk, Віктор Федорович Янукович, ; ; born 9 July 1950) is a former politician who served as the fourth president of Ukraine from 2010 until he was removed from office in the Revolution of D ...

was elected

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

. Yanukovych opted to keep Ukraine a non-aligned state.Yanukovych opens door to Russian navy keeping base in Ukraine
GlobalSecurity.org Retrieved on March 9, 2010 This materialized on June 3, 2010 when the

Ukrainian parliament The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine ( uk, Верхо́вна Ра́да Украї́ни, translit=, Verkhovna Rada Ukrainy, translation=Supreme Council of Ukraine, Ukrainian abbreviation ''ВРУ''), often simply Verkhovna Rada or just Rada, is the ...

(Verkhovna Rada) excluded, with 226 votes, the goal of "integration into Euro-Atlantic security and NATO membership" from the country's national security strategy giving the country a non-aligned status.Ukraine has no alternative to Euro-Atlantic integration – Ukraine has no alternative to Euro-Atlantic integration – Poroshenko
Interfax-Ukraine (23 December 2014)
Ukraine abolishes its non-aligned status – law
Interfax-Ukraine (23 December 2014)
Ukraine's complicated path to NATO membership
Euronews (23 December 2014)
Ukraine Takes Step Toward Joining NATO
''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

'' (23 December 2014)
Ukraine Ends ‘Nonaligned’ Status, Earning Quick Rebuke From Russia

The Wall Street journal ''The Wall Street Journal'' is an American business-focused, international daily newspaper based in New York City, with international editions also available in Chinese and Japanese. The ''Journal'', along with its Asian editions, is published ...

(23 December 2014)Ukraine drops NATO membership bid
EUobserver (June 6, 2010) " European integration" has remained part of Ukraine's national security strategy and co-operation with NATO was not excluded. Ukraine then considered relations with NATO as a partnership.Yanukovych: Ukraine currently not ready to join NATO

(May 27, 2010) Ukraine and NATO continued to hold joint seminars and joint tactical and strategical exercises.Ukraine, NATO to hold security exercises during Euro 2012

(26 March 2012) After February 2014's Yanukovych ouster and the Russian military intervention in Ukraine, the nation has renewed its drive for NATO membership. On 23 December 2014 the Verkhovna Rada abolished, with 303 votes, Ukraine's non-aligned status. Diplomatic missions of Ukraine

Relations with CIS states

Ukraine's relations with Russia are complicated by energy dependence and by payment arrears. However, relations improved with the 1998 ratification of the bilateral Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation. The two sides have signed a series of agreements on the final division and disposition of the former

Soviet The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nation ...

Black Sea Fleet that helped to reduce tensions. However, Ukraine cut diplomatic relations with Russia as a response to the

Russian invasion of Ukraine On 24 February 2022, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, which began in 2014. The invasion has resulted in tens of thousands of deaths on both sides. It has caused Europe's largest refugee crisis since World War II. An ...

. Ukraine became a (non-official) member of the

Commonwealth of Independent States The Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) is a regional intergovernmental organization in Eurasia. It was formed following the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991. It covers an area of and has an estimated population of 239,796,010. ...

(CIS) on December 8, 1991. In January 1993 it refused to endorse a draft charter strengthening political, economic, and defense ties among CIS members, and completely ceased to participate as a member in March 2014. Ukraine was a founding member of

GUAM Guam (; ch, Guåhan ) is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States in the Micronesia subregion of the western Pacific Ocean. It is the westernmost point and territory of the United States (reckoned from the geographic cent ...

(

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

Azerbaijan Azerbaijan (, ; az, Azərbaycan ), officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, , also sometimes officially called the Azerbaijan Republic is a transcontinental country located at the boundary of Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is a part of t ...

Moldova Moldova ( , ; ), officially the Republic of Moldova ( ro, Republica Moldova), is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by Romania to the west and Ukraine to the north, east, and south. The unrecognised state of Transnistr ...

). In 1999–2001, Ukraine served as a non-permanent member of the

UN Security Council The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) is one of the Organs of the United Nations, six principal organs of the United Nations (UN) and is charged with ensuring international security, international peace and security, recommending the admi ...

. Soviet Ukraine joined the United Nations in 1945 as one of the original members following a Western compromise with the Soviet Union, which had asked for seats for all 15 of its union republics. Ukraine has consistently supported peaceful, negotiated settlements to disputes. It has participated in the quadripartite talks on the conflict in Moldova and promoted a peaceful resolution to conflict in the post-Soviet state of Georgia. Ukraine also has made a substantial contribution to UN peacekeeping operations since 1992. Leonid Derkach (chairman of the SBU, which is Ukraine's security service, successor to the KGB) was fired due to Western pressure after he organized the sale of radar systems to Iraq while such sales were embargoed.

International disputes

Belarus

The 1997 boundary treaty with Belarus remains un-ratified due to unresolved financial claims, stalling demarcation and reducing border security.

Russia

Delimitation of the land boundary with Russia is incomplete, but the parties have agreed to defer demarcation. The

maritime boundary A maritime boundary is a conceptual division of the Earth's water surface areas using physiographic or geopolitical criteria. As such, it usually bounds areas of exclusive national rights over mineral and biological resources,VLIZ Maritime Boun ...

through the Sea of Azov and the

Kerch Strait The Kerch Strait, uk, Керченська протока, crh, Keriç boğazı, ady, Хы ТӀуалэ is a strait in Eastern Europe. It connects the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov, separating the Kerch Peninsula of Crimea in the west f ...

remains unresolved despite a December 2003 framework agreement and on-going expert-level discussions.

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister i ...

Vladimir Putin Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin; (born 7 October 1952) is a Russian politician and former intelligence officer who holds the office of president of Russia. Putin has served continuously as president or prime minister since 1999: as prime min ...

allegedly declared at a

-Russia summit in 2008 that if Ukraine would join NATO his country can contend to annex the Ukrainian East and

Crimea Crimea, crh, Къырым, Qırım, grc, Κιμμερία / Ταυρική, translit=Kimmería / Taurikḗ ( ) is a peninsula in Ukraine, on the northern coast of the Black Sea, that has been occupied by Russia since 2014. It has a pop ...

, Now in 2023 Russia has already annexed the Crimean peninsula and Four regions of Ukraine, Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia .The Imperial complex of Russians
,

Ukrayinska Pravda ''Ukrainska Pravda'' ( uk, Українська правда, lit=Ukrainian Truth) is a Ukrainian online newspaper founded by Georgiy Gongadze on 16 April 2000 (the day of the Ukrainian constitutional referendum). Published mainly in Ukrai ...

(July 3, 2008) Starting in November 2013, the decision by Ukrainian President

to back out of signing an integration agreement with the

started a period of civil unrest between Ukrainians who favored integration with the European Union and those who wanted closer ties with Russia. This culminated in the

Revolution of Dignity The Revolution of Dignity ( uk, Революція гідності, translit=Revoliutsiia hidnosti) also known as the Maidan Revolution or the Ukrainian Revolution,

. Russia took advantage of this political instability to annex Crimea in March 2014, though Ukraine still claims sovereignty over the territory. Russia has also allegedly supported separatist forces in the

War in Donbas War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militias. It is generally characterized by extreme violence, destruction, and mortality, using regular o ...

. In December 2015 Russian hackers reportedly hacked Ukraine's power grids leading to a blackout and widespread terror. On 24 February 2022, diplomatic relations were cut with Russia as a response to the

Moldova

and Ukraine have established joint customs posts to monitor transit through Moldova's break-away

Transnistria Transnistria, officially the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic (PMR), is an unrecognised breakaway state that is internationally recognised as a part of Moldova. Transnistria controls most of the narrow strip of land between the Dniester riv ...

Region which remains under

OSCE The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) is the world's largest regional security-oriented intergovernmental organization with observer status at the United Nations. Its mandate includes issues such as arms control, prom ...

supervision.

Romania

Ukraine and

Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Moldova to the east, and ...

have settled their dispute over the Ukrainian-administered Zmiyinyy (Snake) Island and the Black Sea maritime boundary at the

International Court of Justice The International Court of Justice (ICJ; french: Cour internationale de justice, links=no; ), sometimes known as the World Court, is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN). It settles disputes between states in accordanc ...

. The CIA World Factbook states that "Romania opposes Ukraine's reopening of a navigation canal from the

Danube The Danube ( ; ) is a river that was once a long-standing frontier of the Roman Empire and today connects 10 European countries, running through their territories or being a border. Originating in Germany, the Danube flows southeast for , p ...

border through Ukraine to the

Black Sea The Black Sea is a marginal mediterranean sea of the Atlantic Ocean lying between Europe and Asia, east of the Balkans, south of the East European Plain, west of the Caucasus, and north of Anatolia. It is bounded by Bulgaria, Georgia, Rom ...

Investment promotion

State enterprise InvestUkraine was created under the State Agency for Investment and National Projects (National Projects) to serve as a One Stop Shop for investors and to deliver investment consulting services.

Relations by country

Multilateral

Africa

Americas

Asia

Europe

Ukraine and all UN member states in Europe, except Belarus and Kazakhstan, are members of the Council of Europe.

Oceania

Regional blocs

External links

* '' Гай-Нижник П. П.'
Росія проти України (1990–2016 рр.): від політики шантажу і примусу до війни на поглинання та спроби знищення.
– К.: «МП Леся», 2017. – 332 с.
State Agency for Investment and National Projects website (en)

Ukraine: Quo Vadis?
edited by Sabine Fischer, Chaillot Paper No. 108, February 2008,

European Union Institute for Security Studies The European Union Institute for Security Studies (EUISS) is a Paris-based agency of the European Union (EU) within the realm of Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP). The EUISS is an autonomous agency with full intellectual freedom and res ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Foreign Relations Of Ukraine