"Historical mission": Expert considers Putin's justifications in the Ukraine war "absurd" - and names real intention

Created: 2022-06-20 04:46

By: Yasina Hipp

The whole world wants to understand why Vladimir Putin is pushing the war in Ukraine.

According to an Eastern Europe expert, the Kremlin boss sees himself on a "historic mission".

Munich - The eastward expansion of NATO, the alleged oppression of Russian-speaking people in Ukraine, a "denazification" - Kremlin boss Vladimir Putin has given a whole series of justifications for the advance of his troops in the country.

This map shows where the Ukraine war is raging.

But which of these really makes sense?

What did Putin seriously mean by this?

Eastern Europe historian Franziska Davies explains in an interview with

and describes the previous justifications for the Ukraine conflict as "absurd" and "ridiculous".

The expert names the real reason for the war.

Ukraine war: According to an expert, Putin sees himself on a “historic mission”

According to Davies, it is worth taking a look at the past to gain a better understanding of the Russian president's motivation.

Putin sees the existence of Ukraine as a mistake by the Bolsheviks, from his point of view Ukraine still belongs to Russia.

"Putin sees himself on a historic mission to make Ukraine Russian again," Davies

told

Following Putin's logic, Ukraine should not belong to NATO either.

The historian describes Putin's views as "neo-imperial".

He measured himself against the imperial greatness of Russia in the 18th and 19th centuries, which is why it was catastrophic for him that Russia lost its imperial greatness with the end of the Soviet Union.

Davies also sees this as one of the reasons why Western politicians and societies find it so difficult to understand Putin's motives.

Because starting a war for purely ideological reasons is “completely anachronistic” for Europe.

In a recent speech, Putin again lashed out at Western politics.

Kremlin chief Putin mourns his country's imperial greatness of the 18th and 19th centuries.

© picture alliance/dpa/POOL EPA/AP/Yury Kochetkov

Ukraine war: Putin is not satisfied with half measures

With a view to the further course of the war, Davies does not see a chance that Putin will simply withdraw from Ukraine.

He strives for an order “based on the 19th century or the Cold War of the 20th century”.

Therefore, according to the expert, his goal is to continue destroying Ukraine as a state and nation.

Even if he were forced to take breaks for military reasons, he could use them to gather forces and attack again.

At this point, Davies also refers to the war that has actually been smoldering since 2014 and describes the current advance as the "expansion" of 2014.

According to the historian, it is striking that in Germany there is a lack of knowledge and a certain empathy for the historical heritage of the Eastern European countries.

In Russia and the Eastern European countries there are two cultures of remembrance that meet in Ukraine.

On the one hand, in the western part of the Ukraine there is a culture of remembrance in Eastern Central Europe of a double occupation: the Hitler-Stalin Pact and the subsequent occupation by Germany or the Soviet Union.

In Russia and the rest of Ukraine, the Soviet-influenced culture of remembrance prevails, which includes pride in having contributed to the victory over fascism.