Western Ukraine sees itself as part of Europe. Eastern Ukraine wants to maintain close relations with Russia.
Last February, they had a revolution, in which the Russian-sympathizing President Viktor Yanukovych was overthrown and driven out of the country. Russia condemned the western-leaning revolutionary government and took back historically Russian Crimea, which Khrushchev had transferred to Ukraine in 1954 (when it manifestly did not matter).
Folks in the Russia-sympathizing eastern parts of the country, centered on Donetsk, rebelled against the Kiev government, aiming to split the country.
Lately, the fighting escalated to the use of advanced ant-aircraft missiles. On Monday, the rebels shot down a Ukrainian Air Force AN-26 transport and captured the crew who bailed out. Today, they shot down what they thought was another Kiev AN-26, but it turned out to be MH17. Bad move!
Kiev claims the leader of the rebels, Igor Girkin/Strelkov, is a colonel in the GRU. Naturally, Moscow denies that. Obviously, there are questions about how the rebels obtained the anti-aircraft rockets and the training to use them.
Western Ukraine sees itself as part of Europe. Eastern Ukraine wants to maintain close relations with Russia.
That’s false. There has never been a free poll in E. Ukraine advocating such. If it was true the majority had wanted union with Russia in the East they would have easily broke away from the weak central govt back in February. When this started the Ukraine military had no batteries in trucks and were outgunned by a squad of babushkas.
If their really had been a genuine popular revolt the central govt would have been ejected from Donbas. Instead we had a phony Russian managed astroturf revolt and Putin to sent in his goons. All leadership of the “separatists” are in fact Russian nationals.
ALL polls from the East and South, whether done locally or from international organizations, have ALL shown that the separatists only enjoy a minority of support. Probably even less now, what with all the kidnappings and murder the "separatists" engage in to control the residents.
Russia condemned the western-leaning revolutionary government and took back historically Russian Crimea, which Khrushchev had transferred to Ukraine in 1954 (when it manifestly did not matter).
The Russkies only had Crimea since they ethnically cleansed somewhere between 2 to 7 million Ukrainians, not to mention non-Ukrainian "kulaks" and others who resided there.
Crimea is geographically a part of Ukraine. It does not even have a land connection to Russia.
Folks in the Russia-sympathizing eastern parts of the country, centered on Donetsk, rebelled against the Kiev government, aiming to split the country.
Strelkov and most of his cronies are Russian agents. Half of the war dead have been Russians, even Muslim Chechens sent as part of the Vostok battalion. Their corpses were sent back to Russia, not buried in East Ukraine.