Ukraine-Russia: Is Vladimir Putin seeking to rebuild an empire?

Audio 7:30 p.m.

Russian President Vladimir Putin during a meeting of his Security Council, this Monday, February 21, 2022. © SPUTNIK / REUTERS

By: Clementine Pawlotsky

1 min

Programmed state of emergency, mobilization of reservists, appeal to Ukrainians to leave Russia.

Kiev is accelerating its preparations in the face of the threat of a Russian invasion.

Yesterday, Tuesday February 22, Russian parliamentarians in the Duma authorized President Vladimir Putin to deploy his troops on Ukrainian territory.

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Monday, February 21, the master of the Kremlin proclaimed the independence of the separatist regions of Donbass, in eastern Ukraine.

In other words, in the eyes of Moscow, the republics of Donetsk and Lugansk are no longer Ukrainian regions but now independent and sovereign states.

This scenario has a precedent: in 2008, the Kremlin had already recognized the independence of two pro-Russian separatist republics in Georgia: Abkhazia and South Ossetia.

If he denies wanting to reconstitute an empire, the intentions of Vladimir Putin question as much as they worry.

How do historians analyze these events?

Can the current situation in eastern Ukraine be compared to that of 2008 in Georgia?

Decryption with: 

François-Xavier Nérard

, lecturer in contemporary history at

, author of

Alain Blum

, historian, director of studies at the

, author of

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• Russia

• Ukraine

• Vladimir Poutine

• Fall of the USSR, 30 years later

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