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War in Ukraine

Ukraine is the only active warzone in Europe at the moment. The South-Eastern part of the country, known as the Donbas region, has been at war since April 2014, prolonging the war for over 7 years as of June 2021. Total casualties have amounted to over 13,000 individuals, while over 1.5 million civilians are reported to have been internally displaced during the war. Most recently, Russian President Vladimir Putin’s order for a build-up of army and naval forces near Russia’s border with Ukraine since April 2021, is expected to escalate the war further, with more casualties, civilian displacements, and even annexations being predicted. So, why is war still raging on in Europe and why is no one aware of it?

The disputed regions between Ukraine and the Russian Federation.
Kwwhit5531, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons

What Caused the War?

The main cause of the war is rooted in Ukraine’s ambiguity on whether they are joining NATO (and the EU) or remaining a Russian ally. While a vast majority of citizens support Ukrainian relations with NATO, people living in Eastern Ukraine- which borders Russia- oppose it in favor of closer Russian ties. Why is this a problem? NATO and Russia have been rivals since the Cold War, and although over three decades have passed since the fall of the Soviet Union, this rivalry has persisted, getting stronger under Russian President Putin’s regime. After Russia’s annexation of Crimea, a region in South-Eastern Ukraine and with strategic naval access to the Black Sea, in 2013, NATO began sending military assistance to aid the Ukrainian Army in preventing further annexations as Russia began militarizing Crimea and Ukraine’s border with Russia. Therefore, in an effort to integrate Ukraine into their respective sides, they helped escalate minor conflicts between pro-Russian and anti-Russian groups in Ukraine into a full-scale proxy war in 2014. The use of the term ‘Proxy War’ alludes to the fact that the real belligerents- NATO and Russia, are fighting their war “by proxy” through the War in Ukraine.

At the same time, despite both sides having periodically withdrawn military aid to Ukraine, rogue local combatants have continued fighting, showing that the aforementioned internal conflicts related to Ukraine’s diplomatic relations were significant contributors to the war as well. One of the main factors causing tensions internally is the language barrier between the Russian-speaking Eastern Ukraine (30% of the population) and a majority of the other regions of the country that speak Ukrainian (68% of the population). Due to the Ukrainian government’s increasing efforts to encourage the use of the national language, Ukrainian – first by enforcing quotas on entertainment and media that restrict the use of other languages in national broadcasts since 2016, and then through the prioritization of Ukrainian in the public education system from 2017 onwards – Russian speakers and those with Russian ethnicity in the country have felt increasingly threatened. Moreover, the Ukrainian Government’s permittance of classes that taught any of the official languages of the European Union, over the country’s second-highest language demographic Russian, meant that Russian-speaking Ukrainians were more compelled to be loyal to the foreign Russian government than the domestic Ukrainian government.

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Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, CC BY-SA 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

The war officially began when Russia offered military aid to pro-Russian rebels in Donetsk at the time of the pro-EU ‘Euromaidan Movement’ and the Ukrainian Revolution in 2014 – that ousted pro-Russian President Yanukovych. Emboldened by the offer of Russian military assistance, the pro-Russian ‘separatists’ overthrew their local government to form their own self-declared proto-state named the Donetsk People’s Republic (DNR). At the same time, the North-Eastern region of Luhansk also had separatist rebels overthrow the government and form the Luhansk People’s Republic (LNR), campaigning with those in Donetsk for Russian governance like in Crimea. In response, the Ukrainian government threatened war with Russia if their troops were to pass through the border. There were no Russian advances, but the Ukrainian government was unable to suppress the rebels in Donetsk and Luhansk, allowing them to continue fighting with the Ukrainian army and expand the territory under Ukraine’s control.

Interim Prime Minister of Ukraine, Arseniy Yatsenyuk, blamed Russia for the seizures, "The plan is to destabilize the situation, the plan is for foreign troops to cross the border and seize the country's territory, which we will not allow,'' he told BBC, adding that people engaged in the unrest had distinct Russian accents.

Have there been Efforts for Peace?

As soon as the war began, the government attempted to arrange for a ceasefire on multiple occasions. It was not until the Minsk I Agreement of September 2014 that a multilateral agreement was signed for a ceasefire by representatives from Ukraine, Russia, DNR, and LNR. However, the agreement failed as the fighting intensified further after a brief ceasefire, prompting a second peace agreement in February 2015, known as the Minsk II Agreement, compiled by the leaders of Ukraine, Germany, Russia, and France. Minsk II was more effective particularly because it declared the autonomy of the DNR and LNR and allowed them free elections and self-governance. Nevertheless, separatists recommenced fighting after a few months of relative peace, mainly due to the lack of response to their appeals for further autonomy and free elections. After over 4 years of failed ceasefire agreements, the Steinmeier Formula was established, entailing: further free elections for DNR and LNR, reintegration of the regions to Ukraine with specially-recognized autonomy, withdrawal of troops, and hostage swapping. Following the Normandy Format (between leaders of Germany, Russia, Ukraine, and France) peace talks, an effectively planned ceasefire came into effect in July 2020, prompting the war to significantly de-escalate by September. But the question remains: will this peace last?

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Jiel Beaumadier, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

What is the Current Situation?

Fighting recommenced at the start of 2021, with death rates at twice that of the previous year. Tensions rose further as, in April, the Russian military moved an estimated 85,000 troops to Crimea, stationed only 40 kilometers (25 miles) away from the Ukrainian border. Russian government spokespersons have insisted that these movements pose no threat.

However, Dmitry Kozak, deputy head of Russia's presidential administration, told the BBC that Russian forces could intervene to "defend Russian citizens” and that “everything depends on the scale of the conflagration." He also warned that an escalation could mark the "beginning of the end" for Ukraine - "not a shot in the leg, but in the face.”

According to the Washington Post, Russia’s Ministry of Defense has also said it is moving more than 10 naval vessels, including landing boats and artillery warships, from the Caspian Sea to the Black Sea, which lines Ukraine’s coast, for “exercises.”

White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Russian troop numbers there (in Crimea) were the highest since 2014 when the conflict in eastern Ukraine began. She described the situation as "deeply concerning", according to the BBC.

How Can You Help?

Stay informed on the war, regularly updating yourself on any escalations. At the same time, start discussions and discourse on the war, and future possibilities with people you talk to. Be sure to consider all sides of the war; if you come from a NATO-member country, consider the Russian perspective, and vice versa, as it helps you reach a fair conclusion on how permanent peace can be settled, or what might happen in the following months or years.

If you wish to follow the history and the timeline of the war, or catch a glimpse of its intensity, Vice News has a documentary series on YouTube named ‘Russian Roulette’ which followed the progression of the war from the Ukrainian Revolution until the fighting in late 2015. They also continue to make videos of updates and recent interviews that you can keep up with.


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