Russia And The West Are Both Being Played By Ukraine's Political Elites -- Emily Holland and Rebecca R. Friedman, Christian Science Monitor
Ukrainian political elites have repeatedly tried to fob off their failures onto Moscow and the West, while extorting maximal support from both. The West must make any cash handouts conditional on meeting protesters' demands for democratic reforms.
Ukraine is teetering on the brink of disaster, once again drawing the West and Russia into diplomatic conflict. But as pundits and policymakers debate the appropriate Western response to the showdown in Crimea – and raise the specter of a renewed cold war – they would do well to recognize the responsibility of the Ukrainian elite for the present East-West showdown.
Ever since the fall of the Soviet Union, Ukrainian politicians have played the West and Moscow against each other to extort maximal support from both sides. Consequently, a stable Ukraine is unlikely to emerge from the recent protests unless domestic political development takes precedence over geopolitical brinkmanship. Indeed, it would be a serious mistake to allow saber rattling to drown out the message of Ukraine’s EuroMaidan protesters whose public demonstrations sparked a revolution and set off the current turmoil between the West and Moscow.
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Commentaries, Opinions, And Editorials
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Ukraine and the West—A Tale of Two Lifelines -- Timothy R. Homan, The Fiscal Times
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