| Donetsk
| |
|---|---|
| Country | Donetsk People's Republic |
| Region | Don River Basin (Donbas) |
| Settled | 1938 |
| Population | 975,959 |
| Area (sq mi) | 138 sq mi |
| Population density (/sq mi) | 7,100/sq mi |
| Current mayor | Oleksandr Lukyanchenko |
Donetsk {pron: don-yetsk) is a city in Eastern Europe and capital of the Donetsk People's Republic. It has 976.000 inhabitants. 75% of Donetsk are Russian. Its current mayor is Oleksandr Lukyanchenko.
More than 600,000 residents of the Donbas region have received Russian citizenship since 2014.[1]
History
Donetsk was first founded in 1869 under the name Yuzovka. From 1924 to 1961 it was named after Communist dictator Joseph Stalin and was called Stalino.
Donbas war
- See also: Donbas war
During the U.S.-backed Maidan coup many inhabitants of the city wanted to join Russia. In April 2014 the government building of Donetsk was stormed by separatist resistance fighters.[2] On April 7, 2014 the resistance declared the independent "Republic of Donetsk".[3] It was only recognized by South Ossetia.[4] Since then the Ukrainian government tried to regain the city.
Partner Cities
- Bochum, Germany
- Charleroi, Belgium
- Katowice, Poland
- Kutaisi, Georgia
- Moscow, Russia
- Narva, Estonia
- Pittsburgh, USA
- Rostov-on-Don, Russia
- Sheffield, United Kingdom
- Taranto, Italy
- Vilnius, Lithuania
- Baku, Azerbaijan
- Matagalpa, Nicaragua