Let me start with the history of the Russian-Ukrainian war, at its beginning.
The Ukrainian war is a long-term result of the Ukrainian protest known as the Euromaidan Revolution, which occurred on February 18, 2014. Viktor Yanukovych – the disreputable but congressionally elected president of Ukraine – was vouching for a deal with Russia involving the transaction of 15 billion dollars in Ukrainian government bonds for approximately $268.00 per 1000 cubic meters of natural gas. He also rejected a deal with the E.U. to expand the trading opportunities of Ukrainian goods for cooperation in areas such as justice, energy, and anti-corruption, as well as a commitment to uphold European values of democracy. In response to this, the Ukrainian people revolted against Yanukovich. Yet this is not the only detail that makes the revolution significant.
This revolution was sparked by the United States, specifically two government officials: Victoria Nuland, Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian affairs, and U.S. Ambassador Geofrry Pyatt. In an intercepted phone call between the two, most likely obtained by the Russian government, they confess involvement in the political struggle of Ukraine as they have supported several right-wing leaders who oppose Yanukovych. In this phone call, Nuland discussed how to aid one of the officials they supported, Arseniy Yatsenyuk. A transcript published by the BBC reads, “He needs to be talking to them four times a week, you know. I just think Klitsch is going in… he’s going to be at that level working for Yatsenyuk, it’s just not going to work.” Six days after the Euromaidan Revolution, President Yanukovych was forced to flee from Kyiv, and in his place, Yatsenyuk assumed control as the Ukrainian Prime Minister.
The sudden change in power sparked a new separatist movement to rise up against Yatsenyuk’s control: the Donbas movement, a group of Russian-identifying Ukrainians who opposed the unconstitutional overthrow of Yanukovych. With the financial and military support of Russia, the separatists took over the city of Sloviansk on April 12th, 2014, and declared the creation of the Donetsk and Luhansk People’s Republic in the same year, attempting to secede from the Ukrainian government. However, they were unsuccessful, and the Ukrainian government regained control of the city.
Years later, Zelensky became president. Ukraine tried to join NATO, and Russia fought back, attempting to annex the country. But our public knowledge of this war is skewed by our country’s complicated relationship with Russia. Our antagonistic history with Russia has left us with a biased and uninformed understanding of its military capability, which has resulted in the spread of several misconceptions about the war itself.
One such misconception is the theory that Russia attacked for no reason. Russia did have some cause, although the validity of which may be questionable. In 1990, Ukraine issued a declaration of its statehood. A clause in article nine of this declaration stated, “The Ukrainian SSR solemnly declares its intention of becoming a permanently neutral state.” Afterwards, in 1996, this declaration was included in the Ukrainian constitution, and a year later was added to the Treaty of Friendship with Russia. The two states agreed, “Each High Contracting Party shall refrain from participating in, or supporting, any actions directed against the other High Contracting Party, and shall not conclude any treaties with third countries against the other Party. Neither Party shall allow its territory to be used to the detriment of the security of the other Party.” In Russia’s view, Ukraine’s membership in NATO not only contradicted their original claims but also violated their agreement. Since NATO has been aiming to encompass all of central Europe, and Ukraine is a border country to Russia, Russia perceived the attempt to join NATO as a threat to its security and a violation of its treaty. However, whether this is truly the case is questionable.
To conclude, our views on the Russian-Ukrainian War are not totally accurate. What actually happened is a case where America, NATO, and countless other organizations have interfered in the affairs of other countries. And let me tell you, this is not the first time we have ever done such a thing. Iraq, Vietnam, Palestine; these are all countries that we have gotten involved in, and the result is often war. Every time, our government claims that we are “cracking down on terrorism” and spreading democracy, that our cause is true and righteous, that we are fighting back against these oppressive governments. In some instances, the U.S. does sometimes improve the situation. But most of the time, our meddling causes more harm than good, despite what our media says. So now I encourage you to question what you know of society. Ask yourself, “Is this true?” instead of blindly accepting what you are told. Let me tell you that if everyone in this world questioned history more than they do right now, our world would be a better place.
