Reni, Ukraine
Reni (Ukrainian: Рені́, pronounced [reˈn⁽ʲ⁾i]; Romanian: Reni) is a small city in Izmail Raion, Odesa Oblast, southern Ukraine. It hosts the administration of Reni urban hromada, one of the hromadas of Ukraine.[1] Reni is located in the Bessarabian historic district of Budjak and on the left bank of the Danube. The settlement was founded around 1548, acquiring city status in 1821. Population: 17,736 (2022 estimate).[2]
Reni
Рені | |
|---|---|
City | |
 | |
 Flag  Coat of arms | |
  Reni Location of Reni in Odesa Oblast  Reni Reni (Ukraine) | |
| Coordinates: 45°27′27″N 28°16′16″E | |
| Country |  Ukraine |
| Oblast |  Odesa Oblast |
| Raion |  Izmail Raion |
| Government | |
| • City Head/Mayor | Ihor Plekhov |
| Area | |
| • Total | 393 km2 (152 sq mi) |
| Population (2022) | |
| • Total | 17,736 |
| • Density | 45/km2 (120/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC+2 (EET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+3 (EEST) |
| Postal code | 68800—809 |
| Area code | +380 4840 |
| Website | renimvk |
There are six schools, one filial branch of the Oles Honchar Dnipro National University, and three Ukrainian Orthodox church buildings. Reni is also home to the Light of the World Church.[3]
History
Until July 18, 2020, Reni was the administrative center of Reni Raion. The raion was abolished in July 2020 as part of the administrative reform of Ukraine, which reduced the number of raions of Odesa Oblast to seven. The area of Reni Raion was merged into Izmail Raion.[4][5]
2023 Reni port attack
On the night between July 23 and 24, 2023, during the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the nationwide missile attacks, the port of Reni was attacked by Russia, being struck by multiple suicide drones. The port of Reni is an internal port of Ukraine, laying on the Danube river which forms Ukraine's border with Romania, the port itself lying half a kilometer away from the Romanian bank of the Danube.[6]
Multiple Romanian sailors in the waters around the port caught the bombings on camera, and a Romanian ship was damaged during the assault. Similar attacks targeted the nearby ports of Izmail and Kiliia, all laying on the Danube. The government of the neighbouring country allowed numerous ships to immediately cross the border.[7]
Romania is a NATO and European Union member state, therefore if, hypothetically, a stray Russian missile or suicide drone would have accidentally bombed Romania, they could enable NATO's Article 5. A similar event already took place in the village of Przewodów, Poland, when a stray missile, that was initially believed to be Russian, hit a grain dryer, killing two people. The missile was later identified being Ukrainian.[8]
Demographics
According to the 2001 Ukrainian census, the surrounding Reni Raion includes some 38,000 people (including those in the town), 49% of them ethnic Moldovans/Romanians, 18% Ukrainians, 15% Russians, 8.5% Bulgarians and 8% Gagauz.[9]
Gallery
Freedom Square
Grave of the soldiers
Regional History Museum
Ascension of the Lord Cathedral
Traditional houses in Reni
Sts. Constantine and Helena Church
Notable people
- Maksym Braharu (born 2002), Ukrainian footballer
- Alexander Deutsch (1899–1986), Soviet astronomer
- Pavel Ciobanu (born 1955), Moldovan soccer player
References
- "Ренийская городская громада" (in Russian). Портал об'єднаних громад України.
- Чисельність наявного населення України на 1 січня 2022 [Number of Present Population of Ukraine, as of January 1, 2022] (PDF) (in Ukrainian and English). Kyiv: State Statistics Service of Ukraine. Archived (PDF) from the original on July 4, 2022.
- "The dream God had for the city of Reni, Ukraine – Home". Archived from the original on January 31, 2008.
- "Про утворення та ліквідацію районів. Постанова Верховної Ради України № 807-ІХ". Голос України (in Ukrainian). July 18, 2020. Retrieved October 3, 2020.
- "Нові райони: карти + склад" (in Ukrainian). Міністерство розвитку громад та територій України.
- "Moscow Hit By Drones As Russia Strikes Key Ukrainian Export Route On Danube Near Romania". Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. July 24, 2023. Retrieved July 24, 2023.
- "Rușii au bombardat Ucraina la granița cu România. Portul Reni de pe Dunăre a fost atacat cu drone". Digi24 (in Romanian). July 24, 2023. Retrieved July 24, 2023.
- Morris, Loveday (November 16, 2022). "Border village in east Poland hit by deadly fallout from war next door". Washington Post. Retrieved December 2, 2022.
Przewodow, border village in Poland, hit by deadly fallout of Russia's war – The Washington Post... After a stray missile killed two local men, Przewodow, a village in east Poland, found itself at the center of fears about a direct conflict between Russia and NATO.
- 2001 All Ukrainian population census results for Odesa Region Archived July 31, 2009, at the Wayback Machine
