Putin’s recent annexation of the four Ukrainian territories of Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson, which make up roughly 15-20% of Ukrainian territory, has sparked international controversy and has further strained the already-polarized economic and political landscape between the West and Russia.
Western sources have slammed the claimed annexations as “illegal” and “illegitimate” in addition to strongly condemning Russia’s attempts at expanding its sphere of influence over Ukraine. The Biden administration has increased its large array of sanctions on top Russian officials and their immediate families. Furthermore, the administration has imposed economic sanctions on newly founded shell companies created to help major Russian military suppliers escape restrictions that were created earlier in the year immediately after Putin’s grandiose speech claiming that “people living in Luhansk and Donetsk, Kherson and Zaporizhia are becoming our citizens. Forever.” (“Vladimir Putin Illegally Annexes Four Ukrainian Oblasts”)
In addition to the sanctions, further polarization in the world order was prevalent when the White House released a statement mentioning that the US considered the results of the supposed referendums a “sham” (Wilkie), which meant that the referendums would not be acknowledged by the West.
Continued support from the West led to the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelensky, submitting an accelerated admission procedure to join NATO and continuing to pressure the West into allowing Ukraine to join the US-led bloc, though, Russia has continuously warned Ukraine from joining NATO to the brandish extent of having threatened the use of nuclear weapons if such an event were to occur.
By completing the “annexation” of the four territories, Putin has seemingly wagered more and more into this war and continues to commit heinous atrocities, despite the increasing civilian unrest over the war and demands for peace from Russian citizens. This is evident as in the past week, over 1,000 people have been detained following demonstrations as Putin announced to draft 300,000 extra men to engage in combat (Murphy).
It appears that Putin’s main aim from these annexations is to spark domestic support by attempting to convince the Russian population that the Russian side is winning at a tenuous time in which Putin’s approval ratings are plummeting at a significant rate, especially since Putin announced the mobilization of 300,000 Russian citizens.
At a recent UN meeting, the US urged for a Security Council resolution that condemned the annexation of the four territories in addition to demanding Russia to leave the lands they “illegitimately” occupied. Although, Russia vetoed this resolution attempt and countries such as India, China, Gabon, and Brazil abstained (“Vladimir Putin Illegally Annexes Four Ukrainian Oblasts”). This highlights divisions in the world order in terms of levels of support for Putin’s war against Ukraine.
In the upcoming weeks, tensions between Russia and Ukraine will probably continue deteriorating as Putin has reaffirmed his support for the war following the referendums and will continue to vow any means necessary to protect Russia’s “territorial integrity”, regardless of the seemingly waning support from his population as expressed by the growing number of protests and lower approval ratings.
References:
Murphy, Matt. “Ukraine War: Hundreds Arrested as Russian Draft Protests Continue.” BBC News, 25 Sept. 2022. www.bbc.com, https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-63021118.
“Vladimir Putin Illegally Annexes Four Ukrainian Oblasts.” The Economist. The Economist, https://www.economist.com/europe/2022/09/30/vladimir-putin-illegally-annexes-four-ukrainian-oblasts. Accessed 1 Oct. 2022.
Wilkie, Amanda Macias, Christina. “U.S. Announces New Sanctions on Russia in Response to Ukraine Annexation.” CNBC, https://www.cnbc.com/2022/09/30/us-set-to-announce-new-russia-sanctions-over-ukraine-annexation.html. Accessed 1 Oct. 2022.
— Writer Ansh Narula can be reached at anshnarula700@gmail.com.
Follow him on Instagram @anxshh_
— Editor Sirichada Wattansiritanawong can be reached at sirichada.w@gmail.com.
Follow them on Instagram @sirisaysnya
