Dette innlegget er også tilgjengelig i:

On August 24, 1991, the Ukrainian parliament proclaimed its independence. This proclamation came one year after the parliament declared Ukraine’s state sovereignty. Until then, Ukraine had been under Soviet rule and, prior to that, under Russian rule. The proclamation in parliament was confirmed by a referendum held on December 1, 1991. 90.92% of the votes endorsed the parliament’s declaration of independence. Today, Ukraine’s Independence Day is celebrated and is more important than ever.

Independence Day During in the War

Today, millions of Ukrainians are celebrating their Independence Day. The celebration is being observed around the world. Five million Ukrainians have temporarily left their homeland. The reason refugees have been flooding across the borders into Western Europe is simple. Russia launched its full-scale war on February 24, 2022. In fact, the war actually began as early as 2014, when it turned into a kind of frozen conflict—a frozen conflict in which Russia occupies Crimea and parts of eastern Ukraine, known as the Donbas. The reason for the conflict was that the then-pro-Russian President Viktor Yanukovych wanted to bring Ukraine even closer to Russia. This was completely contrary to his own campaign promises and against the will of the people. Read more about this in my previous blog post.

From 1991 until Russia’s annexation of Crimea and parts of eastern Ukraine, Russia exercised a form of complete control over its neighbor. This control was possible partly because Russia succeeded in getting many pro-Russian politicians elected, and partly because Ukraine was, in practice, completely dependent on Russia economically. Russia actively used corruption to make Ukraine dependent on Russia.

The Referendum on December 1, 1991

Russian propaganda tells a story that Crimea and the Donbas were opposed to independence from the Soviet Union (Russia). This is not true. The truth is that in all parts of Ukraine, there was a large majority in favor of independence. Even in Crimea, there was a large majority. In central and eastern regions such as Odessa, Donetsk, Luhansk, and Kharkiv, the majority ranged from 80 to 90 percent.

In other words, there is no substance to the Russian propaganda claiming that a majority in several regions of Ukraine was against independence. Since the start of the full-scale war, Russia has held a little-recognized referendum in the occupied territories. The results of this so-called referendum are of little interest. First, people were threatened into voting to join Russia; second, Ukrainians who had fled the war did not participate; and finally, Russians who had moved into the areas to replace the Ukrainians who had left did participate.

Happy Independence Day to all Ukrainians

I send my warmest and most heartfelt thoughts to all Ukrainians—whether they live in Ukraine, are fighting on the front lines against Putin’s terrorists, or are trying to live a normal life in Ukraine. I also send my thoughts to the 5 million who have temporarily left the country, as well as the many more millions who are internally displaced within Ukraine.

The war in Ukraine is a war for all of Europe. May Ukraine finally achieve true independence.

Sources:

Wikipedia: Independence Day of Ukraine

Ukrainform: Ukraine Marks the 33rd Anniversary of the Independence Referendum