The situation in Wudong changed dramatically overnight. Why did Putin do this？
[Text/Observer Network Shine Wong] When I woke up, the situation in Wudong changed greatly.
On the 21st local time, Putin announced that he recognized the independence of Wudong region, and Russian armed forces entered Donbass region to maintain local peace. The US suggested that Zelensky leave Kiev; The White House announced that Biden will soon sign an executive order prohibiting economic exchanges between American citizens and Donbass. ……
The situation in Wudong is heating up rapidly. Why did Putin do this?
Li Haidong, a professor at the Institute of International Relations of the Foreign Affairs University, told Observer.com that Russia’s recognition of the independence of Donbass is a very important event in the evolution of European security order since the Cold War.
He believes that after the Cold War, the United States has been ruthlessly expelling and crowding out Russia and building a European security order that is unfair and unreasonable to Russia and sacrifices its interests. Today’s tragic situation is a serious tragedy caused by this practice in the United States.
"The distinctive feature of the United States and NATO countries in building a European security order is to satisfy their dominant position at the expense of the interests of big countries. It manipulated many small and medium-sized countries to construct the European security order in a way that did not respect Russia’s major security interests. It is difficult to resolve this contradiction for a long time, which has led to a major outbreak of contradictions accumulated by the United States, Russia and North Russia. "
Li Haidong said that this incident once again shows that Russia is a key component of European security, and any arrangement that ignores Russia’s security interests and demands will inevitably be countered by Russia without mercy.
In April 2014, civilian armed forces in Donetsk and Lugansk regions of Ukraine clashed with Ukrainian government forces, and civilian armed forces subsequently announced the establishment of the Donetsk People’s Republic and the Lugansk People’s Republic.
After the mediation of the international community, the two sides of the conflict reached a ceasefire agreement in Minsk, the capital of Belarus, in September 2014 and February 2015 respectively. Since then, large-scale armed conflicts have been controlled, but small-scale exchanges of fire have occurred from time to time.
Li Haidong believes that the key reason for the independence of Donbass region is that, encouraged by NATO, the United States and other external forces, the Ukrainian side has a fatal problem with the relevant policies in this region.
"Ukraine tried to completely cancel the autonomous status of Donbass by force, which is obviously inconsistent with the Minsk Agreement reached under the Normandy model in 2015. The local people in Donbass are unable to ensure their autonomy. At this time, if there is no external force involved, then the Minsk Agreement will lose its legitimacy and effectiveness. "
Li Haidong analyzed that the current situation shows that the supporting forces behind the internal disputes in Ukraine are no longer covered up and completely showdown. He believes that,At present, it is inevitable that the conflict in eastern Ukraine will continue to deteriorate.
Donetsk citizens hold celebrations. Russian News Agency video screenshot
"Because of the conflict between Ukraine and Donbass, Putin has instructed Russian armed forces to enter Donbass to maintain local peace," Li Haidong said, and now it is up to Ukraine to accept the latest Russian decision. Otherwise, the war between Russia and Ukraine will be hard to avoid, which can be counted as "a hot war that is not a large-scale hot war."
In addition, a US official revealed that Biden’s government had suggested to Zelensky that he should leave Kiev, the capital of Ukraine, and go to Lviv, the western city of the country, for security reasons.
Regarding the US proposal, Li Haidong believes that this shows that the conflict caused by internal disputes in Ukraine will spread further, not only in Donbass in the east, but also in western Ukraine. "This story is far from over. Now it can only be said to be a comma, which is far from the full stop."
Location map of Donetsk and Lugansk from CCTV news client
After Putin recognized the independent status of Donetsk and Lugansk, the United States and European countries also responded quickly.
White House press spokesman Psaki said that the United States had anticipated that Russia would take such action and was ready to respond immediately. Biden would soon issue an executive order prohibiting Americans from making new investments, trade and financing in Donetsk and Lugansk regions.
"This is a basic attitude expressed by the United States after the incident-opposing Russian claims and actions," Li Haidong said. There will be more sanctions than just one wave, and the United States will launch stronger sanctions on the basis of coordination with its allies. Moreover, in the process of sanctions, it is also observing what other reactions Russia has in Ukraine.
Li Haidong thinks:"Russia’s unfair treatment after the cold war made it think that it was justified to protect its own interests in any way, even nuclear weapons. This also means that the overall situation of European security continues to deteriorate to the tragic situation of’ no lowest point, only a lower point’. "
On February 17th, Zelensky visited the border troops in Donetsk, Ukraine. Image source: vision china
On the other hand, in Europe, French President Macron and German Chancellor Scholz both condemned the Russian decision in a three-way telephone conversation with Biden.
At the same time, the President of the European Council Michel and the President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen also issued statements saying that they "condemn in the strongest terms the decision made by the Russian President to recognize Donetsk and Lugansk as independent entities". At the same time, the EU said that it would take sanctions against those who participated in "this illegal act".
"Europe is different from the United States. Europe doesn’t want the Ukrainian crisis to deteriorate, because the continuous deterioration means that the crisis and war will never be eliminated in Europe." Li Haidong said that the constructive role of Europe depends on whether Europe’s security and defense can be truly independent. If Europe’s security and defense are not independent and still dominated by the United States and NATO, then the overall security of Europe will inevitably be the same as that of US-Russia relations, with no lowest point, only a lower point.
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