more Ukraine research and thoughts.

[Johnny Marr]

I’m not American, and you’re not backing up your points with evidence

On Thursday, January 27, 2022, Martin Dietze <mdietze at gmail.com> wrote:

> 1On Thu, 27 Jan 2022 at 12:37, Johnny Marr <marrja at gmail.com> wrote:
>
> > One thing I have to disagree with Martin over: the cultural divide
> between
> > residents of Ukraine who would consider themselves Russian and those who
> > would consider themselves is a very real thing.
> >
>
> I strongly disagree. There are very few Ukrainians considering themselves
> Russian. Overestimating their number and also overestimating regional
> differences within the country is a mistake many foreigners make, because
> from some perspective this may just "fit into the picture" (and Russia has
> actually very carefully masked their invasion to the country's East as an
> "insurgency", so that if people sceptical towards "Western narratives" tend
> to consider this as a proof of their assumption on Ukrainian society).
>
> On the "Ukrainians condering themselves Russian". In the parts of Eastern
> Ukraine not under occupation there is no noticable support for a union with
> Russia or separatism. In the occupied territories there is no way to know
> how people feel because since 2014 they have had no possibility to express
> their preferences freely and without risking their lives. Assuming that
> there is a significant difference in preferences just along the front line
> (which is the result of the war, not of any public polls), seems rather
> far-fetched.
>
> On the regional differences. There are regional differences (however they
> are far less significant than e.g. the difference between the old
> generation grown up in Soviet Union vs. those grown up in independent
> Ukraine). Like in most countries. I guess most here on the list are based
> in the US, and with those of your countrymen I have got to know in my life
> in mind I might say that regional differences in Ukraine are not bigger
> than differences between people living in New York to people living in,
> say, Houston, most likely they are actually even significantly smaller.
> Just the "scale" of differences, not their particular kind. In particular
> after Russia had launched its war in Ukraine, people throughout the country
> have got more united than ever.
>
> Cheers,
>
> m.
> --
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>