The so-called Russian-Ukrainian conflict is currently dominating the headlines. The actors involved today may have their own motivations, but the roots of the entire conflict reach deep into the history of both countries. And Ukraine in particular has a turbulent history. Which repeatedly deals with identity, influence, belonging or independence, and the conflict between East and West. A story that holds far more than conflicts and wars. Which helps us, upon closer inspection, to understand the background of the current dispute. Therefore, let's take a closer look at this now. (Ringing) Right at the beginning: the history of a country is always long and complex. This makes it all the more difficult to summarize them in one video; you could make 100 videos. Please understand if we simplify and skip some things. The Ukrainian state, as we know it today, is only 31 years old. But he cites a 1,000-year history. Control over the territory within the current borders of Ukraine changed hands several times. Over time, individual regions of the country have belonged to more than 14 different states. Parts of Ukraine sometimes belonged to the Kingdom of Poland-Lithuania, sometimes to Tsarist Russia or Austria, and later to the Soviet Union. The name Ukraine only became established in the 19th century . That means borderland. On the edge. Not without reason, because the neighboring powers mostly did not regard Ukraine as an independent country, but as part of their own state. Sometimes purely geographically speaking, and sometimes also for political reasons. When we talk about political calculation, we quickly come to a name that is regularly mentioned in connection with the conflict in Ukraine: namely Vladimir Putin. If you want to learn more about the life and career of the Russian president, I recommend clicking on the I above. There you will find a video we made about him and his life story. In 2016, Putin had an imposing statue erected in the center of Moscow, at the Kremlin wall . A 16-meter-high monument to Vladimir the Great. Vladimir I is a Grand Prince of the Middle Ages. In his inauguration speech, Russian President Putin, who shares a name with Prince Vladimir, said: "Prince Vladimir paved the way to a strong, centralized Russian state." A monument to the founding father of the Russian state. So far, so good, but wasn't there something else? Well, Vladimir the Great is also considered the founding father of Ukraine. And this is precisely where a conflict is revealed whose roots reach back to the Middle Ages. In the 8th century, traders from Scandinavia came to the area of ​​present-day Ukraine. Together with slavic tribes, they founded a large East Slavic state between the Baltic and Black Seas: Kievan Rus. In 988, one of the Kievan princes, Vladimir, was baptized and Kievan Rus was Christianized. Less for religious reasons than for strategic ones. He wants to marry the sister of the Byzantine emperor. This is only possible with this baptism. Vladimir and his successors ushered in a golden age for Kievan Rus. With 40,000 inhabitants, Kyiv, the later Ukrainian capital, was one of the largest cities in Europe in the 11th century. The current currency of Ukraine, the hryvnia, takes its name from the monetary unit of Kievan Rus. Vladimir's portrait can be found on the 1-hryvnia banknote. In the 12th century, the empire broke up into many small principalities. Before the Mongols finally put an end to the empire with their invasion in the 13th century . One of these principalities of the former Kievan Rus' later became the Principality of Moscow. From Russia. Kievan Rus is therefore also seen as "the cradle of Russia". Today, Ukrainian and Russian historians argue about who the "true heirs" of Kievan Rus are. Historically speaking, the states of Russia and Ukraine, and incidentally also Belarus ( which is on the periphery), can be considered successor states of Kievan Rus. But the dispute is not so much about science, but much more about politics. As so often happens. And that's where two different opinions clash. First: Are Ukrainians an independent people? The Ukrainians, of course, agree. Or secondly: Are Ukrainians part of a large Russian people? That is also Putin's interpretation. When he speaks of a strong, centralized Russian state. But it is not his invention. The view that Ukrainians are part of the Russian people is rooted in the Russia of the Tsars. This is a period we'll now take a slightly closer look at. After the end of the Kievan Rus', a large part of present-day Ukrainian territory became part of the Kingdom of Poland. The Cossacks are fighting against this Polish rule. These are powerful equestrian associations, so courageous that today the national anthem of Ukraine says: "We give our body and soul for our freedom." "And we will show that we are of the Cossack tribe." The Cossacks succeeded in establishing an autonomous state in the 17th century. The so-called Hetmanate, which existed for several decades. But in the same century, in 1654, the Cossacks submitted to the rule of the Russian Tsar. Initially with extensive autonomy. But the more powerful the Russian Empire became, the fewer freedoms there were for the peoples in the territory of present-day Ukraine. As a result, the first Ukrainian national movement emerged in the 19th century. The reaction of Tsar Alexander II was not long in coming. He prohibits publications in the Ukrainian language. It is considered a dialect of Ukrainian farmers. The word "Ukraine" is also prohibited, and instead the word "Little Russia" is promoted. At the same time, Russia is expanding its territory by adding the sparsely populated southern Ukraine, and is calling the area on the Black Sea Novorossiya. The area is predominantly settled by Russians, but Germans, Romanians and other foreigners also try their luck. In 1869, the British entrepreneur John James Hughes landed on the northern shore of the Sea of ​​Azov. It lies between Russia and present-day Ukraine, right next to the Black Sea. Hughes wants to develop coal mining areas in the steppe region . Endowed with usage rights by the Tsar, he acquires land somewhere in the middle of nowhere. Two years later, his first blast furnace began operation. The workers' settlement of Jusowka is built around Hughes' factory. The city grows, is later called Stalino, and since the 1960s has been Donetsk. In general, the entire region is rich in coal and iron ore deposits. The Donbas, named after the Don River's confluence with the Sea of ​​Azov, became the industrial center of the Tsarist Empire and later of the Soviet Union. Besides Little Russia and New Russia, there are regions in present-day Ukraine that lie outside the Russian Empire: Galicia, Northern Bukovina and Transcarpathia. These territories fell to the Habsburg Monarchy in the 18th century. We've also made a video about the history of this multi-ethnic state, which we've linked above on the I. Unlike the Tsarist Empire, the Habsburg Monarchy recognizes Ukraine as an autonomous ethnic group. They are called Ruthenians. The Ukrainians only became truly independent after the Russian Revolution of 1917 and the end of the First World War. Minor spoiler: Their independence is only short-lived. The Ukrainian People's Republic was founded in 1917, and in the same year Ukrainians elected the Central Rada, the Ukrainian parliament, for the first time. However, the young state is deeply divided internally. And, above all, it has strong neighbors. In the west, Poland, Romania and Czechoslovakia are encroaching on Ukrainian territory, while in the east the Red Army is taking possession. What remained became part of the Soviet Union in 1922 as the Ukrainian Socialist Soviet Republic, or SSR for short . What follows are two of the most gruesome events in Ukrainian history. The Holodomor, which means something like mass murder by starvation. A devastating famine, 1932, 33'. According to more recent estimates, four million people lost their lives at that time. Historians report that the despair was so great that cannibalism allegedly occurred. Many attribute the causes of the famine primarily to Soviet policies. Stalin had forcibly collectivized agriculture, expropriated wealthy farmers, and deported them to labor camps or murdered them as internal enemies. Agricultural productivity is suffering enormously under the coercive measures. This is also because many farmers prefer to slaughter their animals rather than hand them over to the state. Or they refuse to cultivate foreign land collectively. The Holodomor and Stalinist crimes still strain Ukrainian-Russian relations. The Ukrainians want it to be recognized as genocide. An important theme for her in her story. The second event is World War II. Ukraine is one of the main theaters of this war of annihilation originating from Germany. For five years, from 1939 to 1944, the troops of the Wehrmacht and the SS raged here. There are differing accounts regarding the number of victims. In May 2020, the Ukrainian ambassador to Germany spoke of at least eight million Ukrainian war victims. This includes more than five million civilians, women and children. This includes 1.6 million Ukrainian Jews who were murdered by the Nazis in the Holocaust. A further 2.4 million women and men were deported from occupied Ukraine to forced labor as "Eastern Workers". And 400,000 Ukrainians were imprisoned in German concentration camps. In the general remembrance of National Socialism, the suffering of the Ukrainians is often somewhat forgotten. Because often only the victims of the former Soviet Union are mentioned. Historically speaking, this is not wrong, but it is another example of how Ukraine is still struggling for the perception and recognition of its national identity. Even in their own country, because here the conflict-ridden history of the Stalin era and the Soviet Union overshadows the collective memory as an independent country. After 1945, Ukraine remained part of the Soviet Union. From whom she then receives a fateful gift in 1954. To mark the 300th anniversary of Ukrainian-Russian unity— you know, the alliance between the Cossacks and the Tsar— Soviet party leader Nikita Khrushchev gifted the Crimean Peninsula to Ukraine. Which, incidentally, was not always Russian, but only became so with the occupation by the troops of the Tsar in the 18th century. Previously, it was a vassal state of the Ottoman Empire. Khrushchev ascribes a purely symbolic meaning to the gift. After all, it's all part of the Soviet Union. She should live on forever. But in 1991 the USSR, the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, collapsed. And Ukraine is one of these former republics. On August 24, 1991, it declared its independence and secession from the Soviet Union. On December 1, 1991, 90 percent of the population voted in favor in a referendum. Incidentally, the predominantly Russian-speaking people in the Donbas and Crimea also vote for Ukraine. Three years later, the Budapest Memorandum was signed, by which Ukraine handed over its entire nuclear weapons arsenal, the third largest in the world, to Russia. In return, not only Russia, but also the USA and Great Britain assure her of the sovereignty of her own borders. But the country remains in turmoil. Like many former Soviet states, the young nation is struggling with economic problems. Including corruption. From this somewhat chaotic upheaval, a few, but all the more influential, oligarchs emerge as winners. Rinat Akhmetov is one of them. As you may know, the oligarch now owns his own football club, Shakhtar Donetsk. And is considered the richest man in Ukraine. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, he was able to secure large parts of the eastern Ukrainian steel and coal industry without hindrance. And in doing so, he is building a huge network of companies. For Ukraine, the search for its own identity is proving more difficult than the transition to a free market economy. The regions have different historical experiences. Many in the West feel Ukrainian and orient themselves towards Europe. In the east and in Crimea, there is a connection to Russia. Therefore, Ukraine usually directs its foreign policy in both directions. And pursues a so-called multi-vector policy. It's a constant balancing act between East and West. I have to say, this won't last long. Both the West, meaning Europe but also the USA, and Russia see Ukraine as a strategically important ally. And they want to influence the economic and political direction of the country. Their power struggle over Ukraine was revealed in the presidential elections there in 2004. Two candidates, both named Wictor, are facing each other. Viktor Yushchenko advocates for a Western orientation. Viktor Yanukovych receives support from Russia. Yanukovych is declared the winner; it is a controversial result. International election observers also question the democratic process. This leads to weeks of protests in Kyiv's main square, the Maidan. People are wearing orange clothes, carrying flags and scarves. That is the color of Viktor Yushchenko's electoral alliance. They are calling for new elections, are dissatisfied with the country's economic situation, and criticize the increasing influence of Russia. This mass movement went down in history as the Orange Revolution . It soon becomes clear that it is not a revolution in the sense that the protesters had hoped for. Although Yushchenko may govern for the next few years, a fundamental transformation will not take place. Five years later, many Ukrainians therefore elected Viktor Yanukovych as president. Yushchenko's only competitor. What remains is the division between East and West. Negotiations with the EU on an association agreement, i.e. an agreement on closer cooperation, have dragged on for years. But the agreement ultimately fails – in 2013, practically at the last minute. This led to protests in Kyiv against the halt. When a protest camp is brutally broken up by security forces , it is the last straw. A mass movement ensues. The so-called Euromaidan. Some of the demonstrators are peaceful, but some are also violent Ukrainian nationalists . By February 2014, more than 100 demonstrators had been killed. Fighting breaks out on both sides. Government snipers are also believed to have played a role. After years of unrest, the Ukrainian people primarily want security and prosperity. For this reason, a majority of Ukrainians favor joining the EU and, since 2014, also NATO. In addition, foreign players also want to influence the situation and change it to their advantage. Using various means: through money, the dissemination of their views, and military strategies. As we can see now with the Russian approach. Russia is finally getting serious. Russian soldiers invade Crimea. Following a referendum, which is hardly recognized internationally, Crimea will be annexed to the Russian Federation. War breaks out in the Donbas. between Ukrainian soldiers and fighters supported by Russia. That's a very quick summary; there's much more to say about it. Here's a video about it on the I, on the channel "MrWissen2go". You can take a closer look there. Today, many years and several failed ceasefires later, the conflict remains unresolved. On the contrary, it seems to be escalating. Currently, the conflicting parties are blaming each other. Russia and the pro-Russian Ukrainians say: It is the West that is escalating the situation. Russia feels threatened if Ukraine is admitted to the EU or NATO, as this would allow them to extend their sphere of influence right up to Russia's doorstep. It is not as if Ukraine is on the verge of joining NATO. Firstly, there is no consensus on this within the alliance, and secondly, Ukraine has had unresolved territorial conflicts since 2014, which make accession impossible for the foreseeable future. Pro-European people in Ukraine, the USA, or EU states have a different opinion. They say Russia wants to expand its power and return to the times of the great Russian Empire. What scenarios will arise from this stalemate will not be decided by history, but by the future. Therefore, this video ends here. I'm interested in your assessment of the situation in Ukraine. What do you think will happen next? What role does history play in this? Let's discuss in the comments, please remain objective and fair, this is especially important with this topic. If you would like more historical topics, background information on current conflicts, then please subscribe to this channel. We would be pleased about that. Not just once a week, but every day, you'll find exciting historical content on our Instagram channel, linked below, so feel free to check it out, it's always worth it. Here you can find a video in which I talk about the current developments in the region. Among them is a video about a key player in this conflict: Russian President Vladimir Putin. Thanks for watching, see you next time!