THREAD on Ukraine's 20th century history in a global context. This can help understand current events. -- 1) one of possible lenses to look at 20th century history is to see it as struggle between various phantasies to build continental empires. Primarily German and Russian
2) Early 20th century "geopolitics" (Mackinder, Haushofer et al) was obsessed with an idea of Eurasia. Who controls Eurasia, controls the world, it believed. Who controls Eastern Europe, controls Eurasia.
3) Continental empires saw themselves as competitors to the 19th century maritime empires (Britain, France etc) and were dreaming on vast new geopolitical projects which would challenge domination of these maritime empires
4) Eastern Europe (including Ukraine) was seen as a major battlefield between Germanic and Russian geopolitical fantasies. This is why Germans came to Ukraine in 1918 to get food, and why Hitler's "Lebensraum" meant Eastern Europe, including Ukraine
5) Collapse of Habsburg empire after WWI and of 3rd Reich after WWII put an end to the Germanic continental imperialism. But Russian empire restored itself after WWI as Soviet Union, strengthened after WWII, and regained its strength even after collapse of the Soviet Union
6) this means that Russia remains the only empire in Europe which still lives according to 19th and early 20th century imperial geopolitical phantasy. In this lenses, controling Eastern Europe (or maybe Central and Eastern Europe) leads to control over Eurasia.
7) Without this control over Eastern Europe Russia perceives itself as Asia, not Eurasia. And Russians don't want to be "Asia". Anschluss of Belarus brings this "Eurasian" dream closer. Ukraine remains a key obstacle.
8) we can consider all these ideas obsolete, insane, archaic (they are) but it doesn't make them less influential. This is how Putin perceives the reality. these are the sources of his perverse logic
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