Putin does not feel threatened militarily. He is concerned with preventing the advance of democratic values.
(Photo: dpa)
There was iron in Vladimir Putin’s voice, undisguised anger and excitement when the Russian President declared war on Ukraine. Even though he didn’t use the word war in his televised address on Thursday morning and euphemistically spoke of a “military operation” with the aim of “liberating the Ukrainian people”, the fact is: Russia is bombing its weaker neighbour.
Putin’s justification for this fratricidal war is cynical and mendacious: he speaks of fascists who have seized power in Kiev and of a threat that Ukraine poses to Russia. He wanted to “denazify” and “demilitarize” the country. But that’s not the point. The Kremlin boss is all about power and influence.
Yes, the nationalists played a significant role in the overthrow of kleptocrate Viktor Yanukovych in 2014. But they were not subsequently elected to the government by the Ukrainians.
President Volodymyr Zelenskiy is of Jewish descent. His grandfather fought against the Nazis in World War II – as he himself emphasized when he warned against war. Dubious forces such as the Svoboda movement or the radical party of populist Oleh Lyashko have long since been expelled from parliament.
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Militarily, Ukraine does not pose a threat to Russia, it is far inferior to its northern neighbor. Only Putin has made territorial claims. First the Crimea, then the Donbass, later “New Russia” – and now he apparently has his sights set on the whole country. Ukraine is important to the Kremlin’s ambitions to become a great power.
More on the Ukraine conflict:
Without Ukraine, Putin can neither implement his ambitious project of the Eurasian Economic Union in a meaningful way because the market is too small, nor build a military bloc that will secure Moscow’s influence far into Europe.
Ukraine threatens the power of the authoritarian Putin by simply standing for democratic change. Ukraine is by no means perfect. The influence of the oligarchs is still great, there is still a thicket of corruption, and the country is suffering economically and socially. But unlike Putin’s Russia, it has a chance for change. And the Kremlin boss wants to destroy them in order to cement his power.
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