Milove Мілове Меловое | |
|---|---|
  Milove Location of Milove in Luhansk Oblast Show map of Luhansk Oblast Milove Location of Milove in Ukraine Show map of Ukraine | |
| Coordinates:49°22′40″N40°07′50″E / 49.37778°N 40.13056°E /49.37778; 40.13056 | |
| Country |  Ukraine |
| Oblast | Luhansk Oblast |
| Raion | Starobilsk Raion |
| Hromada | Milove settlement hromada |
Area | 605 km2 (234 sq mi) |
| Population (2022) | 5,680 |
Milove (Ukrainian:Мілове;Russian:Меловое,romanized: Melovoye) is the easternmostrural settlement the nominal administrative center ofMilove settlement hromada in theStarobilsk Raion ofLuhansk Oblast in easternUkraine. Population:5,680 (2022 estimate)[1]. Prior to 2020, it was the administrative centre of the formerMilove Raion. The town is currently occupied byRussian troops.
The town is adjacent to theRussian town ofChertkovo inRostov Oblast.[2] Its train station used to be on the Russian side of the border atChertkovo railway station.
The name of the settlement is derived from the name of theMilova River [uk], which name is derived from Russian name of the river -Меловая, which literally means "Chalky". The river is so named because there are chalk layers in a high ridge in the area of the river's source.[3]
It is located on theborder with Russia. The line of theNorth Caucasian Railway divides it into two parts. On the Russian side there is theChertkovo settlement. The railway station is located on the other side of the railroad, in Russia. There was a border control point Milove-Chertkovo on the border with Russia.
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After the construction of the Voronezh-Rostov railroad was completed in 1872, thekhutir of Milove near Chertkovo station. It was a small settlement in theMarkovka Volost [uk] of theStarobelsky Uyezd of theKharkov Governorate of theRussian Empire.[4]
In January 1918 the Soviet rule was established there.[5]
It has had the status of an urban-type settlement since 1938.
DuringWorld War II it was under German occupation from July 1942 to January 16, 1943 and was an entrenched stronghold.[4][5] Later, it was a Soviet stronghold during theBattle of Kursk.[6]
During the hostilities and the German occupation of Milove, 56.6 millionrubles worth of damage was caused, the buildings of thecollective farm and theMTS, the mill, theHouse of Culture, the library, the school, the nursery, the printing house and half of the houses were completely destroyed and burned down. Subsequently, its reconstruction began.
In 1948, a tree nursery was established on the outskirts of the settlement.[4]
In 1953, there was an butter factory, a secondary school, a House of Culture and a library there.[7]
In January 1959 the population was 4592 people: 1964 men and 2628 women.[8]
In 1964, the Starobilsk Veterinary College was transferred to Milove.[4]
In 1972, to honor the liberation from Nazi occupation, a museum of the history of the liberation of the settlement from fascist invaders was opened there[9] and the monument "Ukraine to the Liberators" was installed.[5]
In 1973 there was a butter factory, veterinary college, historical and museum of local history there.[10]
In 1980 the population was 5.5 thousand people, there were a pilot plant of vegetable fats and proteins, a rayon agricultural machinery, a consumer services combine, two secondary schools, a music school, a sports school, a hospital, a House of Culture, two libraries and a museum of geology.[5]
In January 1989 the population was 5921 people: 2700 men and 3221 women.[11]
After theproclamation of independence of Ukraine, the settlement turned out to be on the border with Russia, and a customs post "Milove" was equipped there,[12] which is located in the area of responsibility of the Luhansk border patrol guard of the Eastern Regional Department of theState Border Guard Service of Ukraine.[13] The villages of Milove (Ukraine) and Chertkovo (Russia) are separated by theFriendship of Peoples Street [uk], which is about three kilometers long and is also a state border. This street is home to almost 500 citizens of Ukraine and Russia who live on both sides of it. On the Russian side there are Chertkovsky elevator, railroad station, meat processing plant. On the Ukrainian side of the street are the Milove Refined Oils Plant (not operating), an energy company, and a large market square. In 2004-2013 Milove hosted the annual international festival of modern and traditional Ukrainian and Russian songs "Friendship Street".[14] The border wasde facto opened.[15]
In May 1995, theCabinet of Ministers of Ukraine approved the decision to privatize the repair and transport enterprise located here,[16] and, in July 1995, the decision to privatize of raion agricultural machinery and raion agricultural chemistry.[17]
At the outbreak of thewar in Donbas, Milove was not very affected by the war that raged in much of the region.[2] However, on November 12, 2014, a Ukrainian border guard office was shot at with a grenade launcher leaving no casualties. Political tensions led to security cameras being installed on the Russian side of the border, and a fence being erected on the Ukrainian side of the border.[18][2][19] On November 27, 2015, two Russian servicemen were detained in the city, and later exchanged back to Russian authorities.[20]
It was occupied by Russian forces on February 24, 2022, during the2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine.[21]
As ofUkraine's national census in 2001, Milove had a population of 5,611 people. The linguistic structure of the town is diverse, since also a significant share of the ethnicUkrainian population living in Milove speaks theRussian language natively. The exact linguistic composition of the settlement was as follows:[22]
| percent | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ukrainian | 57.7% | |||
| Russian | 40.1% | |||
| Armenian | 1.5% | |||
| Belarusian | 0.2% | |||
| others | 0.5% | |||
Local highway T-13-07 passes through the settlement.[23] The nearest railway stationChertkovo[5][7] on the partially deconstructed old Zhuravka - Bochenkovo track (part of the Moscow-Kazanskaya - Rostov-Glavny main line)[10] is the junction point of theNorth Caucasus andSouth Eastern Railway.
Громадяни двох країн, за розповідями місцевих, перебігали один до одного в гості, а прикордонники часто закривали на це очі.[Citizens of the two countries, according to local residents, ran to visit each other, and border guards often ignored this.]
