Ukraine War _ Index.pmd

These victories led to the breakup of the Kyivan states, which remained under the dominion of the Golden Horde for a few centuries.10 It was during this period that the Grand Duchy of Moscow began to rise, eventually becoming the heart of what is now Russia and providing a new focal point for the Rus people.11 As for Ukraine, as the control of the Golden Horde started to diminish, Ukraine got abso. [...] This is known as the 1648 Khmelnytsky Uprising.13 In 1654, the Cossacks signed the Treaty of Pereyaslav with the Tsar, breaking the supremacy of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, their allegiance shifting to the Russian Tsar and remaining with the Russian state until early 19th century. [...] Russia and Ukraine were two of the signatories of the founding documents of the USSR in 1922.18 With its sweeping, fertile plains, Ukraine became the breadbasket of the Soviet Union, making it an invaluable part of the USSR. [...] Re-emergence of the Crimean Question in Soviet Russia: From the perspective of the current analysis undertaken here, it is important to mention that in 1954 the Soviet Union transferred the control of Crimea to Soviet Ukraine (then part of USSR).19 The basis of this transfer was ‘the integral character of the economy, the territorial proximity and the close economic and cultural ties between the C. [...] The four components analysed separately and in relation to each other in this chapter are: (i) civilisational legacy and the conflicting identitarian narrative, (ii) ideology of the Russian state and its continuation under ‘Putinism’, (iii) legal aspect of the post-World War II security guarantees and the role of NATO and (iv) the complex geo-economics of the European theatre.