Constitution of Ukraine in the context of "City with special status"

The Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic, abbreviated as the Ukrainian SSR, UkrSSR, and also known as Soviet Ukraine or just Ukraine, was one of the constituent republics of the Soviet Union from 1922 until 1991. Under the Soviet one-party model, the Ukrainian SSR was governed by the Communist Party of the Soviet Union through its republican branch, the Communist Party of Ukraine.

The first iterations of the Ukrainian SSR were established during the Russian Revolution, particularly after the Bolshevik Revolution. The outbreak of the Ukrainian–Soviet War in the former Russian Empire saw the Bolsheviks defeat the independent Ukrainian People's Republic, during the conflict against which they founded the Ukrainian People's Republic of Soviets, which was governed by the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic (RSFSR), in December 1917; it was later succeeded by the Ukrainian Soviet Republic in 1918. Simultaneously with the Russian Civil War, the Ukrainian War of Independence was being fought among the different Ukrainian republics founded by Ukrainian nationalists, Ukrainian anarchists, and Ukrainian separatists – primarily against Soviet Russia and the Ukrainian SSR, with either help or opposition from neighbouring states. In 1922, it was one of four Soviet republics (with the Russian SFSR, the Byelorussian SSR, and the Transcaucasian SFSR) that signed the Treaty on the Creation of the Soviet Union. As a Soviet quasi-state, the Ukrainian SSR became a founding member of the United Nations in 1945 alongside the Byelorussian SSR, in spite of the fact that they were also legally represented by the Soviet Union in foreign affairs. Upon the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, the Ukrainian SSR emerged as the present-day independent state of Ukraine, although the modified Soviet-era constitution remained in use until the adoption of the modern Ukrainian constitution in June 1996.

The administrative divisions of Ukraine (Ukrainian: Адміністративний устрій України, romanized: Administratyvnyi ustrii Ukrainy [ɐd⁽ʲ⁾min⁽ʲ⁾istrɐˈtɪu̯nɪj ˈust⁽ʲ⁾r⁽ʲ⁾ij ʊkrɐˈjinɪ]) are under the jurisdiction of the Ukrainian Constitution. Ukraine is a unitary state with three levels of administrative divisions: 27 regions (24 oblasts, two cities with special status and one autonomous republic), 136 raions (districts) and 1469 hromadas.

The administrative reform of July 2020 merged most of the 490 legacy raions and 118 pre-2020 cities of regional significance into 136 reorganized raions, or districts of Ukraine. The next level below raions are hromadas.

The Revolution of Dignity (Ukrainian: Революція гідності, romanized: Revoliutsiia hidnosti), also known as the Maidan Revolution or the Ukrainian Revolution, took place in Ukraine in February 2014 at the end of the Euromaidan protests. Scores of protesters were killed by government forces during clashes in the capital Kyiv. Parliament then voted to remove President Viktor Yanukovych, return to the 2004 Constitution of Ukraine, and call new elections. The revolution prompted Russia to occupy Crimea, starting the Russo-Ukrainian War.

In November 2013, a wave of large-scale protests known as "Euromaidan" began in response to President Yanukovych's sudden decision not to sign a political association and free trade agreement with the European Union (EU), instead choosing closer ties to Russia. Euromaidan soon developed into the largest democratic mass movement in Europe since 1989. The Verkhovna Rada (Ukrainian parliament) had overwhelmingly approved finalizing the EU association agreement; Russia had pressured Ukraine to reject it. The scope of the protests widened, with calls for the resignation of Yanukovych and the Azarov government. Protesters opposed what they saw as widespread government corruption and abuse of power, the influence of Russia and oligarchs, police brutality, human rights violations, and repressive anti-protest laws.

The Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic, part of the Soviet Union, had four successive communist state constitutions during its existence. The first (1919) was in Russian and the final three were in Ukrainian.

The final constitution remained effective until the Constitution of Ukraine came into force in 1996.

The State Border Guard Service of Ukraine (abbr. SBGSU; Ukrainian: Державна Прикордонна Служба України, romanized: Derzhavna Prykordonna Sluzhba Ukrainy, pronounced [derˈʒɑu̯nɐ prɪkorˈdɔnːɐ ˈsluʒbɐ ʊkrɐˈjinɪ]; abbr. ДПСУ, DPSU) is the border guard of Ukraine. It is an independent law enforcement agency, organized by the Constitution of Ukraine as a military formation, the head of which is subordinated to the President of Ukraine.

The Service was created on July 31, 2003, after the reorganization of the State Committee for Protection of the State Border. During wartime, units of the State Border Guard Service fall under the command of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The State Border Guard Service includes the Ukrainian Sea Guard, which is the country's coast guard. It is also responsible for running Temporary Detention Centres, in which refugees are held.

The Council of Ministers of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea (Ukrainian: Рада міністрів Автономної Республіки Крим; Russian: Совет министров Автономной Республики Крым), briefly SovMin, is the executive branch of government of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea, a republic within southern Ukraine that is currently suspended due to Russian occupation of the Crimean Peninsula since February 27, 2014. The Council of Ministers derived its authority from the Constitution and laws of Ukraine and normative acts of the Verkhovna Rada of Crimea which bring them into its competency.

The Chairman, who is appointed by the Verkhovna Rada (parliament) with approval of the President of Ukraine, headed the cabinet.

An oblast (Ukrainian: область, romanized: oblast, pronounced [ˈɔblɐsʲtʲ] ; pl. області, oblasti), sometimes translated as region or province, is the main type of first-level administrative division of Ukraine. The country's territory is divided into 24 oblasts, as well as one autonomous republic and two cities with special status.

As Ukraine is a unitary state, oblasts do not have much legal scope of competence other than that which is established in the Ukrainian Constitution and devolved by law. Articles 140–146 of Chapter XI of the constitution deal directly with local authorities and their competence.

The Office of the President of Ukraine (Ukrainian: Офіс Президента України, romanized: Ofis Prezydenta Ukrainy, pronounced [ˈɔfis prezɪˈdɛntɐ ʊkrɐˈjinɪ]), formerly the Administration of the President of Ukraine, is a standing advisory body set up by the President of Ukraine pursuant to clause 28, Article 106 of the Constitution of Ukraine. The Office consists of its Head, Deputies of the Head, Chief of Staff, First Assistant to the President, Advisors, Authorized Advisors, Press Secretary, Representatives of the President, Cabinet of the President, Cabinet of the Head of the Office, Services, Directorates, and Departments.