It has been over four months since Russia unleashed its forces on Ukraine, beginning with a full-scale invasion. The invasion put a pause on a period of relative peace and diplomacy between the world’s superpowers. Russia has closed its airspace to airliners belonging to the US and its allies. Western companies have pulled their businesses out of Russia. These measures are reminiscent of the Cold War, as if a second Iron Curtain is descending upon Europe. While this new Russo-Ukrainian conflict may be only four months old, the history behind it is centuries old.
Ukraine sits nestled between Russia and the rest of Europe. Because of this, the region that is now Ukraine has been subject to foreign invasion from the east and the west multiple times throughout the centuries. In the seventeenth century, after being under the control of many empires, Ukraine was split. After a war between the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and the Tsardom of Russia, the east was under Russian influence, while the west fell under Polish control. While the Russians did invade the rest of Ukraine in the late seventeenth century, the east had been under rule for significantly longer. Life under Russia and then the Soviet Union in Ukraine was harsh. They banned the study of the Ukrainian language, and the region was plagued by a famine caused by Stalin. The Ukrainians were also hit hard in World War II by being on the Soviet Union’s western front. Although all of Ukraine had been under Russian rule, the east had been for significantly longer. This divide in the country remains today and is reflected in their ideologies. The eastern parts of the country tend to support Russian-leaning politicians, while the western part of the country supports more western-aligned politicians. The eastern part of the country is predominantly Russian Orthodox, while the west is more Catholic.
Geopolitically, the end of the 20th century was a disaster for Russia. With the failure of the Warsaw pact and the dissolution of the Soviet Union, Russia’s European influence and buffer unraveled before their eyes. They were now exposed, and believed that NATO, largely seen as an anti-Russian organization, was now a direct threat. And these claims are not without reason. Since the fall of the USSR, NATO has moved from western Europe all the way to the Russian border, after agreeing with the Soviet Union that it wouldn’t move any farther east. With the prospect of its neighbor, Ukraine, with such deep historical ties, joining, Russia believes its security and influence are threatened. It's undeniable that Ukraine and Russia share deep historical ties, and that's clear from their history. But the current conflict is due to Ukraine tending to lean more to the west in recent years. In 2014, Ukraine kicked out its pro-Russian leader in favor of a more European-aligned leader, Volodymyr Zelensky. Ukraine has since begun moving more towards the west. With Ukraine moving further towards the west, Russia wants to keep the country in its orbit. For Russia, Ukraine's being a part of NATO would be a geopolitical disaster.
The Russian invasion began under the façade of a "special military operation" in the eastern regions of Luhansk and Donetsk. They planned to "liberate" those in the east from Ukrainian "nazis". Since 2014, rebel fighters in the eastern regions of the country have been fighting for independence. What Russia has done is exploit the pro-Russian sentiment in the east of the country and use it to justify their invasion as a "liberation", when in reality, the invasion is a show of force in opposition to Ukraine’s recent western political alignment.
As of now, we can only hope for peace and a swift end to this conflict. While the Russian invasion has been scaled back, it's still ongoing. It’s fascinating that conflicts that still plague our world today are the result of conflicts and invasions that ended centuries ago.
To help those on the ground in Ukraine, consider donating to the Ukrainian Red Cross.
References
Conant, Eve. “Russia and Ukraine: The Tangled History That Connects-and Divides-Them.” History, National Geographic, 18 Feb. 2022, https://www.nationalgeographic.com/history/article/russia-and-ukraine-the-tangled-history-that-connects-and-divides-them.
“Gravitas Plus: Did NATO Push Ukraine into War?” YouTube, WION, 6 Mar. 2022, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TzgPJeYZaOU. Accessed 29 June 2022.
Time Magazine, director. Russian President Vladimir Putin Announces Military Operation in Ukraine. YouTube, TIME, 23 Feb. 2022, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NrDtNOiP65U. Accessed 29 June 2022.
Image Sources
By Viewsridge - Own work, derivative of Russo-Ukraine Conflict (2014-2021)https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=115506141
CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=1317464
By Andrew Butko, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=40141113
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