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Ukrainian Separatists and the War in Donbass

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The World Disorder

Abstract

When Petro Poroshenko took over the presidency of Ukraine in June 7, 2014, he was committed to re-establishing talks with Russia. But he didn’t have full control over the armed forces, infested with neo-Nazi battalions, as many of the regular troops had refused to fight and deserted. Putin tried to deflate the conflict and dissuade the separatists from proclaiming independence. But he failed. He had no control over the situation on the ground, and the actions of the Kiev “junta”—such as banning Russian as a second language—kept inflaming the population of the Donbass. The war in the Donbass caused a humanitarian disaster because of the atrocities perpetrated by the Kiev troops, but it was the insurgents in Russia who were condemned when Malaysian Airlines flight MH17 was brought down over Ukraine—in what may very well have been a “false flag” operation. As the humanitarian situation in the Donbass became increasingly dire, Putin tried to send humanitarian aid. Kiev tried to block this aid, but Poroshenko bowed to the pressure of the Red Cross, France, and Germany and allowed humanitarian aid to enter the area.

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Notes

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    Ibidem.

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  17. 17.

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  18. 18.

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  19. 19.

    These rockets dated from the time of the Soviet Union.

  20. 20.

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  21. 21.

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  22. 22.

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  23. 23.

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  24. 24.

    “Gefechte im Osten: 730.000 Ukrainer wandern nach Russland aus. Seit Jahresbeginn sind rund 730.000 Menschen aus der Ukraine nach Russland ausgewandert. Das Uno-Flüchtlingswerk hält die Zahlen aus Moskau für glaubwürdig.” Spiegel Online, August 5, 2014. Available at <http://www.spiegel.de/politik/ausland/kaempfe-im-osten-730-000-ukrainer-fliehen-nach-russland%2D%2Da-984567.html>.

  25. 25.

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  26. 26.

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  27. 27.

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  28. 28.

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  29. 29.

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  30. 30.

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  33. 33.

    Declassified at the request of the National Security University, George Washington University, Washington, D.C.

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  35. 35.

    Ibidem.

  36. 36.

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  41. 41.

    Ibidem.

  42. 42.

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  43. 43.

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  44. 44.

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  51. 51.

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  52. 52.

    The Azov Battalion, consisting of the Neo-Nazis of the Patriots of Ukraine, was under the command of the neo-Nazi Sandriy Biletsky, one of the founders of the Right Sector and leaders of manifestations in Maidan Square, the military arm of the National Assembly of Ukraine, a racist and neo-Nazi organization.

  53. 53.

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  54. 54.

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  55. 55.

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  1. Emeritus professor for History, University of Brasília, St. Leon-Rot, Germany

    Luiz Alberto Moniz Bandeira

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Moniz Bandeira, L.A. (2019). Ukrainian Separatists and the War in Donbass. In: The World Disorder. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-03204-3_20

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