[kabar]

This is the Problem with the Ukraine. Half the country (Eastern half) are Ethnic Russians and speak Russian. the Western half is Ethnic European. I think the ultimate result of all this Chaos is either going to be a split of the Country or a brutal war will result in one half dominating the other (Most likely the Eastern half with Russian assistance).

Not so. 5 out of 6 are ethnic Ukrainians.

Roughly speaking, about four out of every six people in Ukraine are ethnic Ukrainian and speak the Ukrainian language. Another one in six is ethnic Russian and speaks Russian. The last one-in-six is ethnic Ukrainian but speaks Russian. This map shows where each of those three major groups tend to live. (about five percent of Ukrainians are minorities who don't fit in any of those three categories.)

[Viennacon]

- Viktor Yanukovych

- Viktor Yushchenko

Now that’s a confusing ballot.

[Viennacon]

If only 1/6 are ethnic Russians, how did Yanukovych win?

[BenLurkin]

So the course of history comes down to having a deep water port, yet once again.

[Wuli]

in your first image, the linguistic map

the nearly completely brown colored penninsula

jutting into the Black Sea is Crimea

If Ukraine starts to break up

I am guessing Putin will move to annex it, as a warning
to the “westerners” in Ukraine that what they lose, or become detached from might be made permanent.

[wildandcrazyrussian]

Without getting into the merits of other arguments on this thread, I want to mention that the people in the colored ethnic map in the Carpathian region (extreme westernmost area) have for centuries not had anything to do with what they think of as Ukrainian separatism, but instead always identified with "Rus" as a general heritage of all in Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, etc. and specifically the Russian state as possible salvation from Austro-Hungarian control. The most common historical name is Carpatho-Russian (-russkij) as the adjective, and Rusin (not Rusyn) as the noun form, with another local variant of self-identification being Rusnak.

They voted in 1991 by 80% to have as much autonomy from the central Ukrainian government as is possible if independence isn't achievable(and would have preferred a return to the Czechoslovakia from which Stalin stole the territory in 1945). I personally know this area and just visited recently.

Given a choice between Russian language and Ukrainian language they much prefer Russian, but that has been officially suppressed since 1945 by the central government in Kiev. There is much propaganda that will deny the truth of this, but self-determination should be a two-way street.