# Russia and Ukraine compared

Russia and Ukraine side by side: 44 shared sourced indicators across 9 domains, and the 17 events their chronicles record of each other.

Canonical: https://terralore.co/compare/rus-vs-ukr
Updated: 2026-08-10 (latest of the two dossiers' refreshes and the two chronicles' verification dates)

Two sourced records set beside each other — nothing on this page was written for the pair. Every figure is the same observation, with the same source, as on the two national dossiers; every event is the same record, with the same sources, as on its own chronicle. Figures are compared, never graded. A "—" is an absence in the source data, never a zero; each value shows its own observation year — vintages differ by indicator and nation.

## Formation

- Russia: 882 — Oleg takes Kiev and Kievan Rus' becomes a single state
- Ukraine: 882 — Oleg takes Kiev and Kievan Rus' becomes a single state

## Economy

| Metric | Russia | Observed | Ukraine | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| GDP | $2.17 T | 2024 | $191 B | 2024 |
| GDP per capita | $14,889 | 2024 | $5,389 | 2024 |
| GDP growth | 4.3% | 2024 | 2.9% | 2024 |
| Inflation | 8.4% | 2024 | 6.5% | 2024 |
| Trade openness | 39.5% | 2024 | 77.8% | 2024 |

## Society

| Metric | Russia | Observed | Ukraine | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Population | 144 m | 2024 | 38 m | 2024 |
| Life expectancy | 73.4 yrs | 2024 | 74.7 yrs | 2024 |
| Urban population | 75.1% | 2024 | 69.5% | 2024 |
| Fertility rate | 1.4 | 2024 | 1.0 | 2024 |

## Governance

| Metric | Russia | Observed | Ukraine | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Voice & accountability | 32.0 | 2024 | 54.9 | 2024 |
| Political stability | 50.5 | 2024 | 58.5 | 2024 |
| Government effectiveness | 45.1 | 2024 | 39.7 | 2024 |
| Regulatory quality | 38.0 | 2024 | 50.1 | 2024 |
| Rule of law | 37.1 | 2024 | 44.6 | 2024 |
| Control of corruption | 29.8 | 2024 | 34.2 | 2024 |

## Health

| Metric | Russia | Observed | Ukraine | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Health spending | 7.0% | 2023 | 8.2% | 2021 |
| Physicians | 5.11 | 2022 | 3.53 | 2023 |
| Under-5 mortality | 5.2 | 2024 | 7.9 | 2024 |
| Measles immunisation | 97.0% | 2024 | 91.0% | 2024 |
| Safe drinking water | 76.3% | 2024 | 87.9% | 2024 |

## Education

| Metric | Russia | Observed | Ukraine | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Adult literacy | 99.9% | 2021 | 99.4% | 2001 |
| Education spending | 4.2% | 2023 | 5.1% | 2021 |
| Primary enrolment | 97.7% | 2023 | 93.3% | 2024 |
| Secondary enrolment | 92.5% | 2023 | 86.2% | 2024 |
| Tertiary enrolment | 60.4% | 2024 | 87.2% | 2024 |

## Technology

| Metric | Russia | Observed | Ukraine | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| R&D spending | 0.9% | 2024 | 0.4% | 2024 |
| Researchers (per million) | 2,639 | 2024 | 586 | 2022 |
| Internet users | 94.4% | 2024 | 82.5% | 2024 |
| Mobile subscriptions | 186 | 2024 | 133 | 2023 |
| High-tech exports | 9.7% | 2021 | 6.4% | 2024 |

## Geography

| Metric | Russia | Observed | Ukraine | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Land area | 16,376,870 km² | 2023 | 579,400 km² | 2023 |
| Forest area | 49.8% | 2023 | 16.8% | 2023 |
| Agricultural land | 13.2% | 2023 | 71.3% | 2023 |
| CO₂ per capita (t) | 14.0 | 2024 | 3.1 | 2024 |
| Renewable energy | 3.5% | 2021 | 8.9% | 2021 |

## Resources

| Metric | Russia | Observed | Ukraine | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Resource rents | 18.5% | 2021 | 7.5% | 2021 |
| Oil rents | 9.7% | 2021 | 0.3% | 2021 |
| Mineral rents | 2.1% | 2021 | 5.3% | 2021 |
| Forest rents | 0.3% | 2021 | 0.2% | 2021 |
| Electricity access | 100.0% | 2023 | 100.0% | 2023 |
| Copper (mined) | 1.3 Mt | 2025 | — | — |
| Iron ore | 86 Mt | 2025 | 52 Mt | 2025 |
| Gold (mined) | 310 t | 2025 | — | — |
| Cobalt (mined) | 7,700 t | 2025 | — | — |
| Nickel (mined) | 200 kt | 2025 | — | — |
| Rare earths | 2,600 t | 2025 | — | — |
| Bauxite | 5.7 Mt | 2025 | — | — |
| Zinc (mined) | 430 kt | 2025 | — | — |
| Phosphate rock | 14 Mt | 2025 | — | — |

## Military

| Metric | Russia | Observed | Ukraine | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Military burden | 7.1% | 2024 | 34.5% | 2024 |
| Defense spending | $149 B | 2024 | $65 B | 2024 |
| Armed forces | 1.5 m | 2020 | 298,000 | 2020 |

Each metric is also ranked across all nations: https://terralore.co/rankings (markdown twins at /rankings/<metric>.md). Full dossiers: https://terralore.co/country/RUS.md and https://terralore.co/country/UKR.md.

## Entangled histories (17 events)

Events in which either nation's sourced chronicle names the other — including under earlier names of the same state. Each is the record exactly as its own chronicle carries it, with that chronicle's sources.

- 1667: **Partition along the Dnieper** — The Truce of Andrusovo and later settlements divided the Ukrainian lands between Russia and Poland, with the left bank and Kyiv under Russian control and the right bank remaining Polish. (from the Ukraine chronicle; sources: History of Ukraine; Bohdan Khmelnytsky)
- 1772–1795: **Galicia to Austria, right bank to Russia** — The partitions of Poland transferred Galicia to the Habsburg Empire in 1772 and most of the right-bank Ukrainian lands to the Russian Empire by 1795, dividing the Ukrainian people between two empires. (from the Ukraine chronicle; sources: History of Ukraine)
- 1775: **Destruction of the Zaporozhian Sich** — Russian troops destroyed the Zaporozhian Sich, the bastion of Cossack self-government, completing the suppression of Cossack autonomy under the Russian Empire. (from the Ukraine chronicle; sources: Zaporozhian Sich; Ukraine: The Cossacks)
- Nov 1917: **Ukrainian People's Republic proclaimed** — Amid the Russian Revolution, the Central Rada in Kyiv under Mykhailo Hrushevsky proclaimed the Ukrainian People's Republic, the first modern Ukrainian state. (from the Ukraine chronicle; sources: Ukraine: World War I and the struggle for independence; History of Ukraine)
- 22 Jan 1918: **Declaration of independence** — The Central Rada's Fourth Universal proclaimed the full independence of the Ukrainian People's Republic from Russia, as German, Bolshevik and other forces contested the country. (from the Ukraine chronicle; sources: Ukraine: World War I and the struggle for independence)
- 1921: **Defeat and Soviet incorporation** — After years of war between Bolshevik, Polish, White and Ukrainian forces, the People's Republic was defeated; most Ukrainian lands were incorporated into the Soviet state, while Galicia passed to Poland. (from the Ukraine chronicle; sources: Ukraine: World War I and the struggle for independence; History of Ukraine)
- 1932–33: **The Holodomor** — Soviet collectivisation and grain seizures caused a man-made famine that killed millions of Ukrainians; many states and, in 2022, the European Parliament have recognised it as a genocide. (from the Ukraine chronicle; sources: Holodomor; Holodomor: Parliament recognises Soviet starvation of Ukrainians as genocide)
- 1932-1933: **The Holodomor and the Soviet famine** — Forced collectivization and ruthless grain requisitioning produce a man-made famine across the USSR; in Ukraine the Holodomor kills an estimated 3.5 to 5 million people and is recognized by many countries as a genocide. (from the Russia chronicle; sources: Holodomor; Soviet Union)
- 19 Feb 1954: **Crimea transferred to the Ukrainian SSR** — The Presidium of the Supreme Soviet transferred the Crimean Peninsula from the Russian SFSR to the Ukrainian SSR, citing economic and geographic ties, an administrative change within the USSR. (from the Ukraine chronicle; sources: Transfer of Crimea to the Ukrainian SSR, 19 February 1954; History of Ukraine)
- 26 Apr 1986: **Chernobyl disaster** — An explosion at the Chernobyl nuclear plant in northern Ukraine caused the worst nuclear accident in history, exposing Soviet failings and fuelling Ukrainian discontent in the final Soviet years. (from the Ukraine chronicle; sources: History of Ukraine)
- 24 Aug 1991: **Declaration of independence** — Amid the collapse of the Soviet Union, Ukraine's parliament declared independence on 24 August 1991, confirmed by referendum on 1 December with over 90 percent voting in favour. (from the Ukraine chronicle; sources: History of Ukraine)
- 5 Dec 1994: **Budapest Memorandum** — Ukraine agreed to surrender its nuclear arsenal and join the Non-Proliferation Treaty; Russia, the US and the UK pledged to respect its sovereignty and existing borders and to refrain from the use of force against it. (from the Ukraine chronicle; sources: Budapest Memorandum on security assurances (Ukraine's accession to the NPT), 5 December 1994)
- March 2014: **Annexation of Crimea** — Following the fall of Ukraine's pro-Russian president, Russian forces seize Crimea and Moscow annexes the peninsula, an action recognized by almost no other state, while Russia backs separatists in eastern Ukraine. (from the Russia chronicle; sources: Russia; Annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation)
- Mar 2014: **Russia annexes Crimea; UN Resolution 68/262** — Russia seized Crimea and declared its annexation after a referendum deemed illegal; the UN General Assembly adopted Resolution 68/262, affirming Ukraine's territorial integrity and declaring the referendum without legal validity. (from the Ukraine chronicle; sources: Ukraine crisis of 2013-14 (Euromaidan, annexation of Crimea, war in the Donbas); General Assembly Resolution 68/262, Territorial integrity of Ukraine (27 March 2014); United Nations Resolution Declares Crimea Referendum Invalid)
- February 2022: **Full-scale invasion of Ukraine** — Russia launches a full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the largest war in Europe since 1945, prompting sweeping Western sanctions, international isolation, and an International Criminal Court arrest warrant for President Putin. (from the Russia chronicle; sources: Russia; Annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation)
- 24 Feb 2022: **Full-scale invasion; UN Resolution ES-11/1** — Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine; the UN General Assembly adopted Resolution ES-11/1 deploring the aggression and demanding the immediate, complete and unconditional withdrawal of all Russian forces. (from the Ukraine chronicle; sources: Russia-Ukraine War (2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine); General Assembly Resolution ES-11/1, Aggression against Ukraine (2 March 2022))
- Sep–Oct 2022: **Purported annexation of four oblasts; UN Resolution ES-11/4** — Russia proclaimed the annexation of Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson; the UN General Assembly adopted Resolution ES-11/4, condemning the attempted annexation as invalid and calling for non-recognition. (from the Ukraine chronicle; sources: General Assembly Resolution ES-11/4, Territorial integrity of Ukraine: defending the principles of the Charter of the United Nations (12 October 2022); Russia-Ukraine War (2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine))

## Sources

- World Development Indicators — World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-06-14 · https://data.worldbank.org
- Worldwide Governance Indicators (via World Bank API) — Worldwide Governance Indicators / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-08-10 · https://www.worldbank.org/en/publication/worldwide-governance-indicators
- Global Health Observatory (WHO, via World Bank WDI) — WHO / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-08-10 · https://www.who.int/data/gho
- Child mortality & immunisation estimates (UN IGME and WHO/UNICEF, via World Bank WDI) — UNICEF and WHO / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-08-10 · https://childmortality.org
- R&D statistics (UNESCO UIS, via World Bank WDI) — UNESCO Institute for Statistics / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-06-15 · https://uis.unesco.org
- ICT indicators (ITU, via World Bank WDI) — ITU / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-06-15 · https://www.itu.int/en/ITU-D/Statistics
- Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026 — U.S. Geological Survey · Public domain (U.S. Government work) · accessed 2026-08-10 · https://www.usgs.gov/centers/national-minerals-information-center
- Military Expenditure Database (via World Development Indicators) — SIPRI / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-06-14 · https://www.sipri.org/databases/milex

Chronicle references are cited inline above and resolve in full at https://terralore.co/country/RUS/chronicle.md and https://terralore.co/country/UKR/chronicle.md.

Citation template: Terralore, "Russia and Ukraine compared", terralore.co/compare/rus-vs-ukr, retrieved <YYYY-MM-DD>.