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Author : Yu. Bulatov
Professor, Dean of the School of Foreign Relation, Moscow State Institute (University) of International
Relations, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation
These are the three traditional indicators that determine any
ethnos: language, culture and religion.
In the past, Ukraine was divided: it was a part of Russia, a part
of Austria-Hungary, and a part of Rzeczpospolita. In this situ-
ation, all processes that related to the influence of particular
confessions affected the entire population. Diversity of faiths
is a specific feature of Ukraine's population - that is to say, it is
not only multiethnic but also multiconfessional.
Ukraine had been part of the Russian state since 1654. Today
Ukrainian politicians are calling into question the very fact of
Ukraine's reunification with Russia in the mid-17th century.
I am deeply convinced that it is high time to consign the Bol-
shevist theory of the three fraternal peoples to the archives and to deide-ologize Russia's eth-
nic history.
As far as the further history is concerned, how is it possible to separate the people that Russia
and Ukraine can be proud of ? We are speaking not only about Nikolai Vasil'evich Gogol.
Take the outstanding galaxy of military leaders of the 19th century who were inseparably
connected to Russia and Ukraine. They were all natives of Ukraine, so how are they to be de-
scribed today? Russian sons of the Ukrainian people or vice versa?
In connection with Crimea, I would like to say this: Historical mistakes must be rectified. In
1954, Khrushchev transferred Crimea to Ukraine. But it is important to understand that
Crimea, with its multiethnic and multiconfessional population, is not a "prize fund" of the
Central Committee of the Soviet Union Communist Party. It is about human fates that cannot
be decided without the consent of the people who have lived on the Crimean territory. And
that historical mistake has been corrected. Today, TV news reports provide ample evidence
of that. Crimean residents are saying that finally, after 60 years, they have returned home - to
Russia.
The "divide and rule" policy imminently leads to the division of big states into small satellite
states. However, in regard to Ukraine, it seems to me that within the current or smaller bor-
ders, the main goal of the U.S. and its allies is to maintain a high temperature on the Ukrainian
issue and do all they can to ensure that the Ukrainian crisis continues for as long as possible.
All of this will enable the U.S. and its allies, as they think, to secure firm positions in immediate
proximity to the Russian borders.
Russia and Ukraine: Together or Apart?