Russia has escalated its military operations in eastern Ukraine. For more than a decade and a half, the cities of Donetsk and Lugansk have played an important part in the Russki Mir concept.
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| [Photo: Unsplash] |
Russian soldiers are preparing to launch a massive onslaught in eastern Ukraine, according to increasing numbers of warnings from Western secret services and intelligence agencies. The reorganization of the units has been finished, and a new commander has been appointed to oversee the operation.
Following the defeat of the offensive on Kiev's capital, it is now necessary to entirely occupy the provinces of Donetsk and Luhansk in order to achieve victory. Some analysts now believe that the employment of tactical nuclear weapons is no longer a possibility.
Russia's President Vladimir Putin is desperate for a victory. His desire for speed is exacerbated by the fact that another victory over German fascism is to be celebrated on May 9, as it has been for the past 77 years.
For more than a decade and a half, the two Ukrainian regions of Donetsk and Lugansk have played a crucial role in the development of the notion of " Russky Mir " ("Russian World"). In a meeting with cultural workers in 2006, Russian President Vladimir Putin characterized it as follows: "The Russian world can and must unite everyone who cherishes the Russian language and Russian culture, wherever they live, whether in Russia or elsewhere." The idea of a cultural commission seems reasonable at first glance; nevertheless, two years later, " Russki Mir " was transformed into a political ideology that supported the war against Georgia.
Kaschnikov is used in place of Kalinka
But, most importantly, it needs to be made clear that " Russki Mir " was not about Kalinka, but rather about Kalashnikov in the Ukrainian context. "Where have you been hiding for eight years?" is one of the most frequently used words in Kremlin propaganda to explain the war against Ukraine, which began on February 24 and is still ongoing.
In the background of this accusation is the assertion that the West stood by and did nothing for eight years while Ukraine attempted to destroy everything Russian in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions, i.e. the " Russki Mir ". The Russian attack represented the final opportunity to avert genocide. In reality, Russian propaganda in this instance reverses the relationship between the criminal and the victim. After eight years, Russia launched the military phase of a conflict that had been fought in different ways for many years prior. The battle began in 2014. It was during the 2004 presidential elections that he reached his first career zenith.
Putin had already stated his point of view to US President George Bush in a telephone chat, saying: "What is Ukraine? We handed them a portion of their territory in Eastern Europe, which is a major portion of their area." In fact, Putin must have loved this "reason" because he used it again to justify the invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
Change of power in Kyiv
Moscow dispatched a large contingent of so-called political technologists to the 2004 presidential elections in order to organize the vote in such a way that Viktor Yanukovych, the candidate, would be elected as the head of state of the Russian Federation. Voters, on the other hand, were outraged when the results were announced. Viktor Yanukovych, a pro-Western candidate, was re-elected to the position of president. Gleb Pavlowski, a Russian political technologist, coined the phrase "Orange Revolution" to describe this change in power. The name "Orange Revolution" was used to describe this change in power.
Following the failure of its initial intentions, Russia attempted to destabilize the situation in Ukraine by increasing economic pressure, primarily through the shipment of natural gas to the country. Kyiv attempted to avoid this by relocating closer to the European Union. Yanukovych was elected president of Ukraine in 2013. There was a draft association agreement with the European Union that was almost ready to sign. Yanukovych has stated that he will sign it.
Russia responded by employing a two-pronged tactic. A customs blockade rendered all of Ukraine's exports to Russia inoperable, and the country was pushed into a financial quagmire. The Kremlin, on the other hand, has vowed to decrease natural gas costs and to engage in large-scale projects if Yanukovych refuses to sign the association agreement.
Second revolution on the Maidan
In doing so, he set off a second revolution, the Maidan revolution, which took place in the winter of 2013/14. Unlike in the past, Putin did not limit his actions to economic pressure. The takeover of Crimea was on the verge of being completed without firing a single shot. However, the situation was quite different in eastern Ukraine, which the Russian-backed separatists are now fighting to capture. Since at least 2010, pro-Russian organizations such as the Oplot organization have been operating in the underground in the region.
This region also had a governor, Mikhail Dobkin, who made no secret of his pro-Russian sentiments throughout his tenure as governor. However, in Kharkov, as well as in Odessa, a port city with close ties to Russia, the pro-Russian demonstrations came to a halt.
In different portions of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions, the situation is different. One of the most important roles was played there by a man who presented himself as a former KGB officer: Igor Girkin, also known as Strelkov". Afterward, he lauded himself for his involvement in the armed struggle's inception eight years before, saying, "I hit the button that started the war." If our unit had not crossed the border, the outcome would have been the same as it had been in Kharkov or Odessa, or perhaps worse. There would have been a few dozen people killed and detained if this had happened. And that would have been the end of it."
Alexei Borodaj, a Russian citizen, was appointed as the first head of government of the so-called People's Republic of Kazakhstan. Strelkov stayed in the position of "Minister of Defense" for a period of time.
A frozen conflict
Over the past few years, the conflict in eastern Ukraine has appeared to have "frozen," or at the very least been confined. At the end of 2020, the Russian political scientist Vladimir Frolov even argued in an essay published on the web platform " Republic " that Russia's foreign policy had taken a strategic turn.
"Without raising a commotion, Russia has altered its approach in the post-Soviet sphere," Frolov stated in his article. 'Eurasian Union,' 'zone of privileged interests,' the'Russky Mir,'regional dominance, the oath of protection for the post-Soviet states against NATO tanks and missiles, and the unique role of 'guarantor of security and sovereignty' for the post-Soviet states against external interference – these big dreams have vanished from the Kremlin's current agenda."
The reason behind this is that the cost of realizing them is prohibitively expensive. It's possible that this was an honest mistake on the part of the expert. However, given the context of Russia's ongoing war against Ukraine, it might also be interpreted as a diversionary tactic in preparation for that conflict. Before the first shots were fired, many Westerners were under the impression that the Kremlin was uninterested in a fight with them.