Big powers fight, small ones suffer

When Ukrainian protesters camped on Independence Square in Kiev demanding their country join the European Union, they might have not known that the incident could escalate into a major crisis splitting Ukraine and triggering a confrontation between Russia and the West.

The pro-EU rally was followed by a counter-protest in Crimea, propelling the region to hold a referendum and secede from Ukraine. The West and Russia immediately blamed each other for initiating chaos in Ukraine, with the Western powers imposing sanctions on Russia, and the latter taking countermeasures. Many media outlets have termed this tit-for-tat between the West and Russia, and the resultant military threat, the beginning of a second Cold War.

The Ukraine crisis has historical roots, because the eastern and western parts of the country are different in many ways. But it is the antagonism between the West and Russia that intensified the conflicts within Ukraine leading to the division of the country. In other words, Ukraine became the victim of power politics.