The developing crisis in Ukraine and the real possibility of a civil conflict in conjunction with a direct or indirect involvement of Russia, the USA and Europe in the region create a dangerous, destabilized climate, with unpredictable geopolitical and financial consequences.
It is the first time since the end of the Cold War that Russia is implicated in such a tense international crisis in a country right on its doorstep. Meanwhile, for the first time since the civil war in Yugoslavia, Europe is trying to manage a crisis without a clear strategy whilst navigating through its member’s conflicting interests.
The Ukrainian uprising against a corrupt and incompetent regime became part of the wider geopolitical “game” due to its strategic relation to Russia and as an energy hub for Europe. This has resulted in an idiosyncratic standoff that is threatening to destabilize the international balances that were established after the end of the Soviet empire.
With the UN’s Security Council blocked, Europe essentially without a strategy due to its members’ conflicting interests, the USA discovering the limits of a super-power and Putin’s Russia seeking its former power, the situation could quickly escalate and get out of control, unless more mature thoughts prevail.
Neither did the Ukrainians who fought for a more democratic regime, neither Europe that has not yet overcome the consequences of the crisis, nor the people who are looking for a new world balance can withstand Ukraine turning into a country where the East and West solve their hegemonic problems. The consequences will be devastating for everyone, should they continue to invest in dividing the country and cultivating existing nationalist prejudices.
TO VIMA
