Russian Geopolitical Concerns and Ukrainian Crisis

A simple question of association with the European Union for Ukraine spiralled into a full-blown crisis involving all the major regional powers along with the United States. Serious allegations have been made from the West particularly from the United States against Russia for its involvement in the Ukrainian crisis. The US-backed sanctions against Russia have so far remained undeterminable. Despite several diplomatic overtures to solve the crisis, the overall picture remains gloomy. Russia has so far avoided confrontation with the West and United States. At the same time, Russia refutes those allegations and maintains that its support in the crisis has a mere ideological base. However, a deep analysis of Russian involvement clearly projects the importance of Ukraine for Russia concerning geopolitics besides historical and cultural dimensions. The loss of Ukraine to European Union will be a significant strategic loss to Russia apart from endangering the large Russian minorities. Therefore, Russia has so far maintained an ‘on and off’ grip over the crisis without overlooking its geopolitical interests.