Russia has struck Ukraine as if it was the first sign of conflict in Europe in response to Russia’s demands to end NATO’s expansion to the east. Origins of the Conflict
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1. Although there were tensions in the relationship between Russia and Ukraine, a former Soviet republic, for quite some time, the tensions began to get out of hand in the early part of 2021. In January of last year, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy requested US Vice President Joe Biden to let Ukraine become a member of NATO.
2. This was a source of anger for Russia, and it began sending troops close to the Ukraine border to conduct a “training exercise” in the spring of last year. It increased this in autumn. By the end of December, the US started exciting the deployment of Russian troops, and President Biden warned of harsh sanctions if Russia were to invade Ukraine.
3. Russia is demanding that the West offers the legal requirement if NATO does not conduct any military operations in the eastern part of Europe or Ukraine. Vladimir Putin claims Ukraine is a puppet state of the West and was never considered a legitimate state.
4. It isn’t the first time that Russia and Ukraine have been high. Russia has invaded Ukraine in 2014 after rebels supported by President Putin took over large areas of eastern Ukraine and had been fighting the Ukrainian army since. At the time, Russia had annexed Crimea.
5. As an ex-Soviet republic, Ukraine has strong cultural and social ties with Russia, and Russia is spoken widely in the country. However, since Russia entered Ukraine in 2014, relations have become strained.
6. Russia has attacked Ukraine after its pro-Russian president was ousted in 2014. The conflict in eastern Ukraine has claimed more than 14,000 people.
7. Russia and Ukraine have agreed to sign the Minsk peace accord to stop the conflict in eastern Ukraine, including the Donbas region. However, as the war continues, Russia says it is sending “peacekeepers” to the area where the conflict is still brewing. The West calls it an attempt to cover up Moscow to claim the sovereign territory.
8. The latest tensions between Russia and Ukraine that border with the European Union have repercussions. This is why the EU, which is the majority of NATO signatories, has joined in with the US to announce sanctions towards Russian entities.
9. French President Emmanuel Macron flew to Moscow to meet with Putin in the last few days. Putin to ease tensions.
10. India has demanded an end to the current conflict brewing between Russia and Ukraine.
