The Complex History of Ukraine and Russia: Expert Analysis by Alexandra Goujon

Occupied at times by the Poles, the Turks, the Austrians and the Russians, the various parts of Ukraine were not reunified until late and only gained their independence in 1991, at the end of history complex, used by Vladimir Putin to defend the war is going there today. By expert Alexandra Goujon.

On February 21, 2022, three days before launching his army to invade Ukraine to justify his invasion, Vladimir Putin is making history by denying that state, nation and even Ukrainian history independent from the history of Russia, from which Ukraine was nevertheless. separated 30 years earlier by declaring its independence on August 24, 1991. Patrice Gélinet analyzes the truth with Alexandra Goujon, lecturer at the University of Burgundy, teacher at Sciences Po Paris and expert in Ukraine and Belarus.

Patrice Gélinet: Ukraine, which, apart from a brief period of four years between 1918 and 1922, only became truly independent in 1991, at the end of a complex history in which, after each other or at the same time, the Poles, the Turks, the Austrians and the Russians. shared pieces of what is today Ukraine and Ukraine, today, have been suffering for two years of Russian aggression justified by Vladimir Putin, because there is a real state before 91, the emphasize that Ukraine and Russia have a common history that goes back very long since then, according to him, according to some, which would be the mother of all Russian cities, that from the main today’s Ukrainian city that Russia would have built for itself.

Alexandra Goujon: So of course, you should know that kyiv or what we call Kievan Rus’ in the Middle Ages, first, it was created by Scandinavians, by Varangians who are Scandinavians who settled along the Dnieper , and will gradually open trade positions. and create a capital around an Empire with several principalities and where Slavs live which will then lead to Ukrainians, Belarusians and Russians. So indeed there is a common history. The problem we have with Vladimir Putin is that this story is common, but it must be controlled by Russia. So we are still within the imperialist, colonial principle of subjugating a hierarchical minority among the Slavic peoples.

So it was a big state, Kievan Rus’. Is that what we call Russia?

Yes, it comes from this word which was originally more of a word of Scandinavian origin, from which the word Russia came, and it also has a Greek origin. And on Kievan Rus’, there are several definitions. It could be a word of Scandinavian Russian origin that could also mean rowing, since indeed these Varangians went down by the rivers.

Kievan Rus’ was one of the largest states in Europe, if not the largest, as it stretched from Finland to the Black Sea. He was born at the end of the 9th century and disappeared three centuries later, at the beginning of the 13th century, the victim of the wars that were against the principles he created and especially the Mongol invasions that lived in the south of Ukraine, while the countryside was integrated into the Kingdom of Poland for more than three centuries. This part of Ukraine, moreover, which was partly Ukraine, was under the control of the Poles longer than the Russians.

Very well. In fact, the first Ukrainian revolution in the 17th century was directed more towards Poland. Poland’s occupation is a revolution against Poland. And besides, this is what actually leads a certain number of Ukrainians to friendship with Russia to fight against this Polish control. And of course, Ukraine is going to be thrown for a long time between Polish control and Russian control.

With “Les infox de l’Histoire”, the third season of the Descartes Foundation podcast in partnership with franceinfo, travel through the moments at the heart of the main moments of disinformation. Patrice Gélinet and his guests reveal and investigate the fake news that has hit the headlines from ancient times to the present day. Conspiracies, disinformation, rumours, slander, media hype… The third season of eight episodes to understand the lies of History.

Producer: Patrice Gélinet
Director: Gilles Blanchard
Reporter/Production Officer: Juliette Marcaillou
Technician: Marie Lepeintre