Since the forced annexation of its Crimean peninsula and the Russian-backed rebel occupation of its eastern fringes in 2014, Ukraine has been going through the most turbulent period of its brief 25-year history as an independent state.
The most challenging environment of all is faced by eastern cities, too far from the EU to make traditional road and rail transport of manufactured goods cost-effective, while near enough to the military front line to deter foreign investment. While western hubs such as Lviv and Ivano-Frankivsk have benefited from low labour costs, highly skilled workers and physical proximity to EU markets, the eastern powerhouses of Soviet days have struggled to keep up.
