In accord to the Constitution Ukraine is a unitary state.

The administrative-territorial system of Ukraine is comprised of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the following twenty-four oblasts: Cherkasy, Ch е rnihiv, Chernivtsy, Dnipropetrovsk, Donetsk, Ivano-Frankivsk, Kharkiv, Kherson, Khmelnytsky, Kyiv, Kirovohrad, Lviv, Luhansk, Mykolaiv, Odesa, Poltava, Rivne, Sumy, Ternopil, Vinnytsia, Volyn’, Zakarpattia, Zaporizhia, and Zhytomyr.

The Autonomous Republic of Crimea is the inseparable constituent of Ukraine, and solves issues delegated to it within the authority delegated to it by the Constitution of Ukraine. The Republic has substantial self-dependency to settle local matters, the Constitution of its own approved by the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine December 23, 1998, supreme representation – the Verkhovna rada of Autonomous Republic of Crimea, and executive – the Republic’s Council of Ministers, bodies.

In addition, two cities, Kyiv and Sevastopol, as equated in status with oblasts: the former as the capital of the country, while the latter as the naval bases of Navies of Ukraine and the Russian Federation.  

Within the administrative and territorial division of Ukraine the middle level units are districts and towns of oblast importance (in autonomous Crimea correspondingly of the republican importance).

The largest cities of Ukraine are Kyiv, Kharkiv, Dnipropetrovsk, Donetsk, Odesa, Zaporizhia and Lviv.

The lowest links in the administrative-territorial system of Ukraine are the towns of regional importance, urban settlements, and villages.

In all, there are 490 districts, 446 cities and towns, 907 urban settlements and 10196 villages in Ukraine.

The largest cities such as Kyiv, the majority of the oblast centers, Sevastopol, Kryvyi Rih, Mariupol, etc. are also divided into municipal districts.

Each of the administrative-territorial units has its regulatory bodies with this or that authority invested.

In accord with the Article 123 of the Constitution of Ukraine territorial system is based on principles of country’s unity and territorial integrity, combination of centralization and decentralization in exercising government authority, balanced social and economic development of the regions with their historical, economic, ecologic, geographic and demographic features, as well as ethnic and cultural traditions  taken into account.