Political Quotes

“Vladimir Putin's brutal invasion of Ukraine rests on the false historic claim that Ukraine is not a real country but a part of Russia. Both Ukraine and Russia trace their roots to ancient civilizations centered in Kyiv. Kyiv was a major city when Moscow was a backwater that no one had heard of. The devastating and brutal Mongol invasion in the 13th century changed everything. Collaboration with the Mongols allowed Muscovy, the predecessor of modern Russia, to become a dominant regional power. Meanwhile, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania exerted control over much of what is now Western Ukraine, giving it a very Western European perspective. Russia, since the Mongol invasion, has been ruled with an iron fist. By contrast, Ukraine has been home to the Cossacks, who embody a sense of freedom and individual autonomy. Just think of Ukrainian Cossacks as the equivalent of the American cowboys of the Wild West. They hated serfdom and oppressive government and sought to elect their own rulers, which they called a hetman. A Cossack state using the name Ukraine in what is now Ukraine's southeast became a major power in the mid-17th century. Then, when Catherine the Great conquered that Ukrainian state, she is recorded as having said: Every effort should be made to eradicate them and their age from memory. Ukrainians' strong national identity threatens the claim of Russian nationalists to be the heir to the ancient Kyiv civilization.…”