The Image shows the Areas under conflict in 2014.
Before we dwell into present crisis between Russia and Ukraine it is important we go back into history and try and find as to how Nations and its people reach a state where they have little control over the events and suffer innumerable miseries. Often the politicians prick the past wounds, do not let the people forget those wounds and cause more miseries.
Background.
Its important for all Indians to go through the Background and grasp its quintessential elements because they bear huge importance to our future as well. The scholars say that History often repeats itself.
WWI had radically altered the European map, It led to the defeat of the Central powers ; Austria- Hungary, Germany, Bulgaria and the ottoman empire i.e Turkey. Meanwhile in 1917 Bolsheviks had acquired power in Russia which led to the founding of Soviet Union, which brought Ukraine also in its control.
The allies who won the war such as France, UK, Belgium, Italy, Romania and Greece gained territory and new nation states were created out of the collapse. The impact of collapse of ottoman empire was felt all over world where muslims resided. including India where it led to Khilafat Movement against Britishers who dismantled the Caliphate of Ottoman empire.
Ostensibly , all these societies who lost territories or were imposed restrictions under treaty of Versailles must have had grievances to settle. Thus gradually , this led to strong racial movement led by those who believed that a HISTORICAL WRONG has been done to them and so they encouraged nationalism that was based on irredentism (popular movements based on correcting perceived historical wrongs) and revanchism (a policy of seeking to retaliate, especially to recover lost territory ). . This process started in Italy under Mussolini and in Germany under Hitler.
Post WW I The German Empire was dissolved and a democratic government, known as the Weimar Republic was created. Italy, although was an ally of UK in WWI and had made some post-war territorial gains; but the, Italian nationalists charged with the greatness of Roman empire were angered that the promises made by UK and France before the war were not fulfilled in the peace settlement.
So, from 1922 onwards a Nationalist movement led by Mussolini seized power in Italy and repressed socialist, left-wing and liberal forces, and pursued an aggressive foreign policy aimed at making Italy a world power and a promise to bring back the glory of ROMAN EMPIRE.
Thus Hitler who acquired power in 1933 and Mussolini espousing a desire to bring back the glory of their Past greatness and superiority inspired their population and led the world to a path of collision and WW II. Both of them first insisted on the cultural and racial superiority of their countrymen and started a modernization and rearmament process . This obviously led to violation of human rights of minorities and we now know what Germans did to jews. Once they felt strong they started invading neighboring countries with an aim to capture those areas which they believed were theirs in past and that finally led to WWII.
If WWI had an impact on Europe, the WWII changed the political alignment and social structure of the globe. The Soviet Union and the United States emerged as rival super powers setting the stage for the nearly half-century-long cold war. It also triggered a decolonization process of Africa and Asia. Most countries whose industries had been damaged moved towards their own economic recovery and this triggered a decolonization process of Africa and Asia.. The Allies established occupation administrations in Austria and Germany. The former became a neutral state, non-aligned with any political bloc. The latter was divided into western and eastern occupation zones controlled by the Western Allies and the Soviet Union.
Germany lost a quarter of its pre-war territory. Among the eastern territories, Silesia, Neumark and Pomerania were seized by Poland, and East Prussia was divided between Poland and the Soviet Union, The Soviet Union also took over the Polish provinces east of the Curzon line, north-east Romania, parts of eastern Finland, and the three Baltic states were merged into Soviet Union. Germany was divided into two independent states. West Germany and the East Germany were created within the borders of allied and soviet occupation zones. The rest of Europe was also divided , Most Eastern and Central European countries fell into Soviet sphere, , which led to establishment of Communist-led regimes, with support of the Soviets. As a result, East Germany, Poland, Hungary, Romania, Czechoslovakia , Albania became satellite soviet states. It also led to a bipolar world ; the NATO and Soviet led warsaw pact countries.
In early 80s when Gorbachev became the President of USSR , he inorder to improve the economically burdened USSR launched a series of reforms popularly called Glasnost and Prestoirika which basically meant ; openness and reconstruction.
These reforms gradually, when percolated into the system which was managed by an iron hand of Communists, it set a series of events both within USSR and also in East Europe. Gorbachev’s decision to loosen the Soviet repression on the countries of Eastern Europe created an independent, democratic momentum that led to the collapse of the Berlin Wall in November 1989, and thereafter it led to the overthrow of Communist rule throughout Eastern Europe.
After the demise of Communist regimes in Eastern Europe, many east European countries and the Baltic States which were part of Soviet Union demanded independence from Moscow. In many such states ethnic violence also erupted because people were divided by the artificial frontiers drawn after the Russian revolution, WWI and WWII.
Add a comment
