On Ukraine crisis: Brinkmanship over Ukraine doesn’t bode well for India

News: With Russia building up tanks and troops along Ukraine’s eastern front, the atmosphere of war has been created.

What is the historical background of Ukraine?

The territory of Ukraine was established in the ninth century as Kievan Rus on the banks of the Dnieper River.

In medieval history, western and northern Ukraine had been occupied by Poland and southern Ukraine by Tartars (descendants of Mongol invaders).

In the 17th century, Cossacks recovered much of the territory from Poland and established a Hetmanate that is the forerunner of today’s Ukraine. This Hetmanate entered into various treaties with Imperial Russia that made it a vassal state.

18th century: Russia annexed much of the territory of today’s Ukraine and Crimea during this period. When the Bolshevik revolution established the Soviet Republic in Russia, Ukraine was engaged in a civil war for independence.

In 1921, the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic (UkSSR) was established, when the Red Army conquered two-thirds of Ukraine. The western third became a part of Poland. In Russia, the Ukrainian territory has been referred to as “Little Russia“. In a surprise move, Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev transferred Crimea to Ukraine, despite an ethnic composition in Crimea that was two-thirds Russian.

After the fall of the Soviet Union, Ukraine declared independence in 1991. A new democratic constitution was adopted in 1996 and a new currency hryvnia (a Kievan Rus term) was introduced.

What is the Russian stand on the ongoing crisis?

According to Russia, Russians and Ukrainians are one people, and “Russians, Ukrainians, and Belarusians are all descendants of Ancient Rus, which was the largest state in Europe.

To stop this crisis, Russia also offered to fully withdraw its troops and missiles from its eastern front. But, in return, it wanted that Ukraine should not be allowed to join Nato.

What is the reaction of West Countries?

West countries will put sanctions on Russia if it tries to invade Ukraine. It will include cutting off Russian access to the international payment system called Swift, which will have severe economic consequences on the Russian economy.

Why Ukraine-Russia conflict is bad for India?

Source: This post is based on the article “Brinkmanship over Ukraine doesn’t bode well for India” published in the Livemint on 1st February 2022.