a student newspaper of the university of tulsa
march 3, 2014 issue 19 ~ volume 99
Ukrainian Spring or Russian Winter? The conflict that has been brewing in the streets of Ukraine over the last two months has finally erupted into a large-scale geopolitical crisis. Scores of protesters are dead, a president has been ousted and Russia now stands poised to forcibly acquire the Crimean Peninsula from the disorganized Ukrainians. Unauthorized Russian troops have moved into the strategically important peninsula in what many are calling an outright invasion. The United States and the EU look on, as memories of 1930s appeasement haunt a world that is witnessing what appears to be a blatantly illegal land grab by Russian President Vladimir Putin. While shots have not yet been fired at or by the Russian troops occupying Ukraine, and shouts of World War Three are grotesquely premature, we at the Collegian feel it is important for our readership to stay informed about international events of this magnitude, and we have decided to devote our cover, a spot typically reserved for TU and Tulsa-specific issues, to the crisis unfolding in Ukraine.
by raphic
Image and Data courtesy Laris Klarkis / Washington Post
J.Christopher Proctor Editor-in-Chief
What’s going on? The crisis in Ukraine continues to escalate with the occupation of Crimea by Russian troops. Ukraine has been in a state of turmoil since late November of last year when then-president Viktor Yanukovych pulled out of trade talks with the European Union, opting instead to make a deal with Russian President Vladimir Putin that would secure Ukraine large loans at low interest rates and a continued flow of cheap Russian natural gas. Many Ukrainians saw the move as a pivot away from Europe and the EU and towards Russia and Putin, and protests soon broke out in Kiev, Ukraine’s capital. The protests, which spread across the country, became known as the EuroMaidan, named after Kiev’s Independence Square (Maidan Nezalezhnosti in Ukrainian). After over two months of constant protests and occasional violent clashes with police, the situation came to a head between Feb. 18 and 20 when police forces attempted to raid the protesters’ encampment on the Maidan. Over 80 were killed as snipers were ordered to fire into the crowd, and structures used by the protests, including at least one serving as a hospital, were burnt. The fallout from this conflict, which was seen as brutal both internationally and within Ukraine, was swift. On Feb. 22 the Ukrainian Parliament voted to depose President Yanukovych— who promptly went into hiding— appointing former Chairman of the Parliament Oleksandr Turchynov acting president until elections can be held this May. The Russian government, however, has refused to recognize the legitimacy of the Parliament’s
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decision and is now hosting the ousted President Yanukovych, who still claims to be the legitimate president of Ukraine. On Feb. 28 matters escalated once more, as unidentified soldiers in the strategically important Crimean peninsula seized two airports, allowing unauthorized planes to land. Russia, which maintains a strong military presence in Ukrainiancontrolled Crimea (home to the Russian Black Sea Fleet), sent an additional 6,000 troops into Crimea on March 1. This move was called a “declaration of war” by the acting Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatseniuk, and Ukraine has now mobilized its military forces. Thousands have joined the Ukrainian military in recent days, and the Russian troops, “after seizing key assets” are “digging in,” according to NPR. Paranoia is high, as rumors of Polish troop mobilizations spread across the internet Sunday afternoon, and little reliable information is coming out of the
besieged peninsula. President Obama scolded Vladimir Putin in a 90-minute phone call for his “clear violation of Ukrainian sovereignty,” but as of printing the Obama Administration has made no clear statements on what action, if any, it plans to take. Context for the crisis Since its independence from the Soviet Union in 1991, Ukraine has had its share of instability. While most economies transitioning from communism in the early 1990s faced initial economic downturns, Ukraine’s lasted a decade, as GDP per capita dropped every year between 1990 and 1999, falling an astounding 22.5 percent in 1994. While growth picked up in the 2000s, the country still lags far behind its Central European neighbors in most economic indicators and has even been outperformed by the notoriously inept Russian post-transition economy. The economy is currently in “grim shape,” with high unemployment and an interim
government in immediate danger of defaulting on its debts. Ukraine’s economic woes have been matched by a degree of political instability that seems closer to fiction than fact. In the winter of 2004 Ukrainians took to the streets to protest a corrupt election which was won by Viktor Yanukovych (the same Yanukovych that was ousted last week), in what became known as the Orange Revolution. While the nonviolent Orange Revolution was successful in forcing a new vote (which was won by opposition candidate Viktor Yushchenko), the new reform-minded government led by Yushchenko and Prime Minister Yulia Tymosh-
enko was unable to make significant headway during its six years in power. In 2010 Ukrainians voted in what was widely regarded as a fair election for Viktor Yanukovych to replace Yushchenko as President, a title he held until last week. While president, Yanukovych imprisoned former Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko on charges of corruption. Tymoshenko was released last week after Yanukovych’s ouster. Behind the political drama, however, are deep-seated cultural and geographical divides in Ukrainian society. The western
See Ukraine page 5
GDP per capita, Poland and Ukraine 1990-2012
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Data from World Bank, Graphic by Sarah Power
The Ukrainian economy has struggled since independence in 1991. While gross domestic product per capita was roughly the same for Ukraine and neighboring Poland at independence, the Polish economy (along with the economies of much of Central and Eastern Europe) has fast outpaced the sluggish Ukrainian economy.
Graphic by Sarah Power
Nestled between Russia and Central Europe, Ukraine has struggled with an identity crisis since its 1991 independence, with influences from Russia and Europe competing for control of Ukraine’s future.