Winter or standard time: what time did Ukraine stay on and why did it abandon daylight saving time

On October 27, 2024, Ukraine will change its clocks for the last time – to winter time, which is the standard time. There will be no more so-called daylight saving time, which was artificially created to make more efficient use of daylight.

This decision was made by the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine on July 16 by voting for draft law No. 4201. Thus, Ukraine will have a single Kyiv time, different from Moscow time. OBOZ.UA explains what time Ukraine has chosen and why it has abandoned daylight saving time.

Winter time is standard, i.e. the main time, and summer time is artificial and temporary, which is set in a certain territory for the summer period of the year (usually one hour longer than the standard time). In addition, daylight saving time is not used in all countries. 140 countries have never used seasonal time or have abandoned this practice. The European Parliament has also supported the idea of abolishing seasonal time change.

On the map, the countries that currently use daylight saving time are marked in blue; those that have abolished daylight saving time are marked in orange; and those that have never used it are marked in red.

What will change in Ukraine

Ukraine is now in the third time zone, UTC+3, as it switched to Eastern European Summer Time (EEST) on March 31. The time was moved forward by one hour from 03:00 to 04:00 local time.

Starting from October 27, 2024, Ukraine will always have UTC+2/Eastern European Time (EET), i.e. two hours plus to Greenwich Mean Time.

What is stated in the bill:

– Kyiv time will be in effect in all Ukrainian settlements throughout the year;

– the document additionally aims to protect the territorial integrity and strengthen the national security of Ukraine, as Russia's time is set in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine;

– the refusal to switch to daylight saving time will reduce the risks to the health of Ukrainians, as most scientists believe that the annual switching of clocks forward and backward by one hour has many negative consequences;

– Ukraine is implementing a "time reform" based on a similar EU initiative, so it is in line with the logic of European integration;

– the draft law also states that changing the clocks does not help energy saving.

Failed attempts to cancel daylight saving time

Ukraine has already had attempts to abandon daylight saving time. The first serious attempt to change from winter to summer time was made by the Party of Regions in 2011. The political party wanted to copy the changes in Russia, where they decided to switch to daylight saving time and cancel further seasonal time changes.

On September 20, 2011, the Rada's resolution canceled the return to standard time. People in the western regions were unhappy with this decision, as they would have to go to work and take their children to school in the dark. A month later, the resolution was canceled.

After that, the idea of canceling daylight saving time was revisited in 2021. At that time, the parliament adopted in the first reading the draft law No. 4201 "On Timekeeping in Ukraine". However, the draft law was not adopted in the second reading.

The motivation of MPs

Now, with daylight saving time, Kyiv time coincides with Moscow time. In Russia, the annual time change was canceled in 2011, when the country remained in permanent daylight saving time. In 2014, it switched to permanent winter time.

Explaining the benefits of abolishing daylight saving time, the Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Ruslan Stefanchuk recalled that in the first days after Russia annexed Crimea, the first thing it did was to introduce "Moscow time" there.

He noted that this is not a matter of feeling but of state policy. "And when someone says that time zones are parallel lines, please look: there are no parallel lines anywhere. There is always a geopolitical dimension. Any time zone is a geopolitical dimension," the Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada emphasized.

He also noted that he does not know people who feel happy about adjusting their biological clocks twice a year because of the time change.

Only verified information is available on our Telegram channel OBOZ.UA and Viber. Do not fall for fakes!