Novoazovsk Raion
Novoazovsk Raion was one of the administrative raions of Donetsk Oblast in eastern Ukraine. The raion was abolished on 18 July 2020 as part of the administrative reform of Ukraine, which reduced the number of raions of Donetsk Oblast to eight. However, since 2014 much of the raion was not under control of Ukrainian government and has been part of the Donetsk People's Republic which continues using it as an administrative unit. Its administrative center was located in the city of Novoazovsk, and its southern portion borders the Sea of Azov. The last estimate of the raion population, reported by the Ukrainian government, was
Location and division
Novoazovsk Raion bordered the city of Mariupol to its west and has the international Russia–Ukraine border to its east. To its northwest, Novoazovsk Raion shared borders with Manhush Raion. To its north, Novoazovsk Raion borders Telmanove Raion.The raion was divided into 15 municipal councils: one city municipality, one town municipality and 13 - rural councils. Within Novoazovsk Raion there were one city, Novoazovsk, one urban-type settlement, 9 selsoviets, and 59 small settlements. Also included within the raion are 14 industrial organizations, 4 construction and transport organizations, 9 kolkhozy, 5 sovhozy, 3 fisheries cooperatives, 5 industrial organizations, 4 construction companies, 35 medical schools, 27 resort areas, and 26 libraries.
History
Before the defeat of the Don Republic by the Red Army in 1920, the territory of the Novoazovsk Raion was part of the Taganrog Okrug of the Don Republic. In April of the same year, the territory as the Taganrog Raion was ceded to the newly organized Donets Governorate.In the beginning of 1923, the Novo-Mykolayivka Raion was organized. On 22 September 1923, the administrative center of the Novo-Mykolayivka Raion, Novo-Mykolayivka, was renamed Budyonivka, and the Raion became Budyonivka Raion. In 1958, the Budyonivka Raion was again renamed, becoming the Novoazovsk Raion, and its administrative center was renamed Novoazovsk.
Within the Novoazovsk Raion, were born the Arctic explorer Georgy Sedov, the general-polkovnik Hero of the Soviet Union I. Lyudnikov, poet N. Scherbina, and the sculptor N. Yasinenko.
Following the events surrounding the war in Donbas, the western part of the raion remained under control of the Ukrainian government, whereas most of the area was under administration of the Donetsk People's Republic. To facilitate the administration, on 9 December 2014, the Verkhovna Rada, Ukraine's national parliament, changed the boundaries and total area of the Novoazovsk Raion to encompass. The district's administration buildings and government were moved to the urban-type settlement of Vynohradne. The amended area of the raion is under control of the Donetsk People's Republic.
Demographics
According to the 2001 Ukrainian Census:| Ethnicity | ||
| Ukrainians | 26,123 | 67.2% |
| Russians | 11,494 | 29.5% |
| Greeks | 389 | 1.0% |
| Belarusians | 208 | 0.5% |
| Germans | 182 | 0.5% |
Environment
- The nature preserve Khomytovs'ka steppe or Khomutovskyy steppe, part of the Ukrainian steppe National Park, is a nature preserve located within the oblast. Having an area is 10.28 km2, the preserve consists of many types of flora. It is currently listed in the UNESCO list of natural monuments.
- The regional park Meotyda is a natural park with a total area of 130.17 km2. The park contains over 640 types of rare and unique flora, 15 of which are listed in Ukraine's Red Book of Rare Species.