Unilateral annexation of four Ukrainian provinces, where are the borders?
(Economist UK, 6 October 2022)
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Suddenly, no one knows where Putin thinks the Russian border is.
“Where does the homeland begin?”
It is the title of a patriotic theme used in Soviet-era films in honor of the KGB and one of President Vladimir Putin’s favorite songs.
In 2010, the president himself stammered the song on the piano at a benefit concert. There was also a small resurgence in 2014 when Russia occupied Crimea in Ukraine.
The song took on an ironic tone in early October.
The formal annexation of the occupied territories of eastern and southern Ukraine by the Russian parliament has left the Russian government unable to answer with certainty where exactly the “motherland” begins.
Officially, Russia claims to have incorporated the provinces of Donetsk, Lugansk, Zaporozhye and Kherson.
Of the four provinces, however, only Lugansk is almost entirely under Russian control.
Unclear lines also in the annexed areas
Although the annexation was apparently justified by the ostentatious referendum held on 23-27 September, it pretended to consult the residents of the non-administered areas, I can’t even do it.
The front line is fluid, with Ukrainian forces advancing rapidly in some areas.
On October 3, as the Russian parliament was preparing to vote, presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters exactly which territories of the two provinces of Kherson and Zaporozhye became part of Russia, without being able to say.
“The government intends to continue the dialogue with the local population and it will depend on the wishes of the residents.”
This statement created confusion.
“How many centuries have passed? Russia does not have a generally recognized border in the west of the country.”
Arkady Mosches, a Russian researcher at the Finnish Institute for International Affairs, said:
“Where do we draw the border if we consider that there are areas Ukraine is entering and others it is not?”
