Will Ukraine Turn into a Second Syria?

Ukraine’s first shot of the civil war has been fired, with the most obvious sign being the fact that extremists within the U.S. and EU-supported opposition party have taken up weapons, turning violent protests into gunfire.

Under public support from Western countries, Ukraine’s anti-government protests have leaned toward violence from the beginning. Protesters used bulldozers to charge at police barricades, forcefully overtook City Hall and several other government buildings, camped out in Kiev’s Independence Square, burned tires, set up a “firewall” and responded violently to police clearances.

The U.S. and EU have always supported the anti-government forces and have even sent high-ranking officials to Kiev’s Independence Square to cheer on the protests, which consequently have intensified, leaving the protesters fearless. Yesterday, “peaceful protesters” carrying weapons chased after and shot at policemen who were under orders to retreat. Some policemen were even beaten to death despite having had provided relief to the injured, while dozens of military police were taken as captives. The U.S. and EU, however, only partially criticized the Ukrainian government’s bloody repression of “peaceful protests.”

The U.S. and Western countries are abandoning the democratic electoral system for which they have consistently advocated, and instead support violent street demonstrations and overturning the legal government with “street democracy” movements. The classic example is the U.S. and Western countries’ full support of Egypt’s mass protests and overthrowing Mohammed Morsi, the democratically-elected president, and now they are using the same trick to overthrow the Ukrainian government. People wonder, “Would Washington, London and Paris allow these kinds of ‘peaceful protests?’”

The extremists out of the U.S.-backed protesters have robbed arsenals of large quantities of weapons, including missile launchers. The Ukrainian army has been forced to intervene, proposing an anti-terrorism slogan. If the U.S. continues to support the extremists’ use of force to confront the Ukrainian army, the result will be civil war.

Both the U.S. and Russia are fighting over Ukraine, putting Ukraine in a predicament. The direct cause for Ukraine’s turmoil is President Viktor Yanukovych’s trade agreement with Moscow, leaving the EU feeling neglected. Since Ukraine currently faces economic difficulties and is in dire need of economic aid, the EU has taken advantage of this. The bailout proposal will not only consist of little money and arrive after some delay, but also comprises political conditions: the release of Yanukovych’s political opponent.

Yanukovych was strapped for money, while the EU feigned ignorance. Under these circumstances, Yanukovych’s only option was Moscow, from which he received the desperately needed $15 billion worth of funding and cheap natural gas. As a result, the U.S. and EU were infuriated and, in order to force Yanukovych into submission, disregarded the democratic and moral principles they have long preached, and openly supported the violent anti-government activities.

Once Civil War Erupts, the Brutality Shall Far Surpass That of Syria

Ukraine has an area of 233,900 square miles and a population of 45.55 million people. Ukrainian speakers are concentrated in Western Ukraine and lean toward joining the EU. On the contrary, the majority of Russian speakers are found in the East, the region closest to Russia itself.

The root of Ukraine’s problems lies in the dissolution of the Soviet Union, of which NATO took advantage to expand eastward and squash Russia’s territory of impact. This very day, the bulldozer that the U.S. and Western countries have been driving has arrived at Russia’s walls. How can the re-emerging Russia sit still?

Russia has maintained a low profile on the Ukraine issue, expressing little opinion. However, Russia holds a critical weapon, natural gas and other natural resources, which Ukraine and European countries need. The U.S. has no better counterattack than to stir up violent protests. The supposed crackdown that the U.S. and Western countries have proposed is at most what Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov calls “blackmail.” If the EU decides on economic sanctions towards Ukraine, it will only push the country towards Russia. The latter has served as a traditional market for Ukrainian goods whereas EU countries do not.

If the U.S. and EU instigate and support the Ukrainian civil war, a full-scale battle will be inevitable, since a third of military enterprises were located in East Ukraine during the Soviet era and the majority of Russian-speaking Ukrainians wish to maintain the traditional relationship they have with Russia.

Once the civil war erupts, its brutality shall far surpass that of Syria, for neither the EU nor Russia will back down. One possible result is the division of the country between East and West. When the Republic of Moldova declared its independence, Russians within the country also declared the founding of the Transnistria Republic, thus setting a precedent — though even today, it receives recognition from no one.

If the U.S. instigates the EU to use force against Ukraine, it may evoke a full-scale European war, not ruling out the possibility of a devastating blow to EU countries by Russia’s powerful nuclear arsenals.

Ukraine is our country’s imperative military-industrial partner. We ought to pay close attention to the aggravation of chaos in the Ukraine.