1、APRIL 2022Russias War in UkraineIdentity,History,and ConflictBy Jeffrey MankoffRussias invasion of Ukraine constitutes the biggest threat to peace and security in Europe since the end of the Cold War.On February 21,2022,Russian president Vladimir Putin gave a bizarre and at times unhinged speech lay
2、ing out a long list of grievances as justification for the“special military operation”announced the following day.While these grievances included the long-simmering dispute over the expansion of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization(NATO)and the shape of the postCold War security architecture in Eu
3、rope,the speech centered on a much more fundamental issue:the legitimacy of Ukrainian identity and statehood themselves.It reflected a worldview Putin had long expressed,emphasizing the deep-seated unity among the Eastern SlavsRussians,Ukrainians,and Belarusians,who all trace their origins to the me
4、dieval Kyivan Rus commonwealthand suggesting that the modern states of Russia,Ukraine,and Belarus should share a political destiny both today and in the future.The corollary to that view is the claim that distinct Ukrainian and Belarusian identities are the product of foreign manipulation and that,t