Ukraine population on decline

KIEV, Ukraine, Jan. 17 (UPI) -- The population of Ukraine has declined by more than 3 million since December 2001, the Ukrainian government's statistics showed.

The State Statistics Service, using demographic data from November 2010, said as of Dec. 1, 2010, the country's people numbered approximately 45,796,000, Ukraine's ForUm reported Monday.

Urban dwellers comprised about 31,448,000 of the population, while the rural people numbered 14,348,000, Ukrinform of Kiev reported.

The statistics are down from December 2001 when the overall population was approximately 48,415,000, with around 33 million city residents and about 16 million in the country, the newspapers said.

The report did not detail the reasons for the decline.