BLUF
Putin claimed that the Soviet Union's collapse was the "greatest geopolitical catastrophe of the 20th century "—implying that Ukraine and Russia are one country and should not be separated.Summary
Note the map above shows the extent of the pre-1991 Soviet Union. All the countries in pink are now independent.
This article by Greg Myre in NPR makes the following points:
- Russia and Ukraine have a shared, a turbulent, 1000 year history.
- In 1991, unexpectedly, one of the world's most powerful nations, the Soviet Union, ceased to exist.
- Ukraine gave up its nuclear weapons in return for a Russian security guarantee.
- Putin blames NATO expansion into Eastern Europe and the possibility that Ukraine may join for his aggression.
- A Former U.S. diplomat thinks the U.S. was too focused on trying to build democracy in Russia.
- Former Soviet officials wanted to maintain their privileged positions and make money.
References
Recent Runway Posts related to this topic:
- RUSSIAN-UKRAINE CONFLICT—RAAF RUNWAY COLLECTION
- RAAF RUNWAY: RATIONALE, GUIDELINES, LEARNING OUTCOMES, ETC.
References from the Web:
- FEB 2022 Why is Russia’s Vladimir Putin so obsessed with invading Ukraine? – Los Angles Times
- FEB 2022 This Is Putin’s War. But America and NATO Aren’t Innocent Bystanders. – New York Times
- FEB 2022 Explained | Why did Vladimir Putin bring up the ‘disintegration’ of the USSR prior to declaring war on Ukraine? – the Hindu
- MAR 2022 Putin’s War on History –the Wilson Center
- The Collapse of the Soviet Union- Department of State
Source: NPR
- Link to Source: NPR
- Media Check: NPR- Media Bias/Fact Check (mediabiasfactcheck.com)
