Ukraine has moved the centre of its sovereignty beyond the country’s borders, which was a mistake by the elites that costs Ukrainian society very dearly, Valdai Club Programme Director Andrey Sushentsov writes.
Despite its complexity and multi-layered nature, the Ukrainian conflict is not unique in world history. Its genesis has two important components: first, an explosive situation is inevitable when radical nationalists become a pillar of a country’s identity; second, the country found itself on the security frontier between two major centres of power and is unable to defend its own autonomy and agency. Ukraine has moved the centre of its sovereignty beyond the country’s borders, which was a mistake by the elites that costs Ukrainian society very dearly.
At the same time, world history shows that there is a way out of such situations: it is necessary to stop delegating the formulation of one’s own interests to someone from the outside. There are people in Ukraine who have the state’s best interests at heart. In the minority today, they are the ones who have directly declared the need for good neighbourly relations with Russia. If Ukraine had adhered to this position from the very beginning of its statehood, I think that we would have had very smooth and constructive mutual relations. We would strengthen each other, actively develop and prosper together.
I fully believe that we can resume this neighbourliness at a new historical stage. Each state, with its own unique history, represents a special experiment that develops through generations, victories and defeats, mistakes and the great deeds of its heroes and leaders. The final configuration of territory and influence that a state arrives at is the fruit of its history, through erroneous or fair decisions.
Painful experience is also useful. I don’t think that what happened will forever determine our relations with Ukraine. In a historical sense, this is not the first time this has happened: it happened in Peter the Great’s time with Hetman Mazepa and his attempts to establish spontaneous coalitions with the Swedes, with the Livonian order in the Middle Ages, with the campaigns of Russian princes against the West, the Polish intervention, etc. This is not the first time we are in this situation, and it is not so hopeless.