THE NEW UKRAINE AND HOMO UCRAINENSIS
THE NEW UKRAINE AND HOMO UCRAINENSIS

Author(s): Maria Piechowska
Subject(s): Politics, International relations/trade, Security and defense, Military policy, Politics and Identity, Russian Aggression against Ukraine
Published by: PISM Polski Instytut Spraw Międzynarodowych
Keywords: Ukraine; independence; war; foreign policy; relations;
Summary/Abstract: In 2021, Ukraine celebrated the 30th anniversary of its independence. Exhibitions, concerts, commemorative meetings, and festivals were held throughout the country. Ukraine demonstrated independence, unity, and strength. The celebrations showed how Ukrainian identity, state, and society had evolved over 30 years. The point of reference was no longer Russia - and for many Ukrainians it used to be; its place taken by Europe. Ukrainians began to emphasise that they no longer wanted to live in a state belonging to the post-Soviet space, dominated by a gloomy and passive homo sovieticus; they wanted to belong, and perhaps even already belonged, to the Western world, with freedom, democracy, and human rights as their core values. The evolution has been gradual, but it is easy to identify the turning points - the Orange Revolution of 2004 and the Revolution of Dignity of 2013. The changes that were taking place triggered interference from Russia, which did not want to accept the Ukrainian turn towards the West. Ukraine’s 30th anniversary was marred by the war that had by then already been going on for seven years.

• Details
• Contents