Ukraine is again looking warily over its eastern border as Russia threatens its territorial integrity.

In recent weeks, a buildup of Russian troops along the Ukrainian border has rattled Western leaders fearful of an incursion similar to, or perhaps even more wide-ranging than, Russia’s annexation of Crimea in 2014.

Then, on Dec. 17, 2021, Vladimir Putin demanded that no former Soviet states, such as Ukraine, be added to NATO – the Western alliance that Ukraine has long expressed a desire to join – and that NATO cease all military cooperation in Eastern Europe.

Such rhetoric harks back to the Cold War, when global politics revolved around an ideological struggle between a communist Eastern Bloc and a capitalist West. It also serves Russia’s ideological and political goal of asserting its position as a global power.

Read more at The Conversation: https://theconversation.com/why-putin-has-such-a-hard-time-accepting-ukrainian-sovereignty-174029

Image Courtesy: https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/russian-president-vladimir-putin-talks-during-a-concert-news-photo/1231790861?adppopup=true