Serhii Zubchenko
PhD in Political Science, Chief Consultant of the National Institute for Strategic Studies, veteran of russo-Ukrainian war; ORCID: 0000-0001-6909-7881
DOI:
Abstract. The article examines some of the prerequisites and consequences of the russo-Ukrainian war, which began with the seizure of Crimea in 2014 and escalated into a full-scale russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, becoming the bloodiest military conflict in Europe since the Second World War. The author emphasises that russia’s unprovoked aggression against Ukraine represents an epochal turning point (Zeitenwende), acting as a catalyst for tectonic shifts in geopolitical processes. In particular, the global order based on the post-World War II norms has been irreversibly destroyed; initiatives aimed at abolishing weapons of mass destruction have been discredited; and trust in international institutions, international law, and collective security systems has been significantly undermined. All of this has led to an escalation of mutual distrust and global tensions, the actual reincarnation of the concept of the ‘right of force’ in international relations, and a growing strategic security deficit.
The article outlines distinctive features of the russo-Ukrainian war compared to other international military conflicts. The author emphasises the explicitly revanchist and imperialist nature of russian aggression, the ineffectiveness of the strategy of appeasement of the aggressor and the fundamental threats posed by its implementation. The author also substantiates the existential nature of the russian threat to the Ukrainian state and nation, as russia seeks not only to seize Ukrainian territories and eliminate Ukraine’s independent subjectivity but also to completely destroy the Ukrainian identity, as well as the dangers of russian neo-imperialism for the entire civilised world, which can only be eliminated by dismantling the kremlin regime and eradicating russian neo-fascism known as ruscism.
Keywords: russo-Ukrainian war, international law, international security, diplomacy, foreign policy, national security, geopolitics.
Download Article (ukr)
References