After the failure of the Orange Revolution of 2004, Ukraine seemed to have been written off – both by its own citizens and by observers from abroad. Since last November, however, hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians have been protesting on the Maidan and elsewhere, tirelessly voicing their demands for freedom, justice and democracy. Whilst the EU is struggling with its deepest crisis yet, we are witnessing a powerful movement on its periphery, calling for values of which we seem to lose sight more and more.
What is at stake on the Maidan? What do the protests mean for the EU? What can, what must the EU do to support Ukrainians in their struggle? What will be the consequences for the relations with Russia?
Mykola Riabchuk is a political and cultural analyst based in Kyiv, and currently a EURIAS Senior Visiting Fellow at the IWM. His most recent book, Gleichschaltung. Authoritarian Consolidation in Ukraine, 2010-2012, was published in both Ukrainian and English.
Discussants:
Ivan Krastev
Chair of the Board, Centre for Liberal Strategies, Sofia; IWM Permanent Fellow
Christian Ultsch
Head of the Foreign Politics Department, Die Presse
Further Reading:
Ukraine: „Fortführung der Revolution von ’89“
Ukraine: Across the Dividing Lines
Zerstörte Illusionen
Statement of the Ukrainian Centre of the International PEN
After the failure of the Orange Revolution of 2004, Ukraine seemed to have been written off – both by its own citizens and by observers from abroad. Since last November, however, hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians have been protesting on the Maidan and elsewhere, tirelessly voicing their demands for freedom, justice and democracy. Whilst the EU is struggling with its deepest crisis yet, we are witnessing a powerful movement on its periphery, calling for values of which we seem to lose sight more and more.
What is at stake on the Maidan? What do the protests mean for the EU? What can, what must the EU do to support Ukrainians in their struggle? What will be the consequences for the relations with Russia?
Mykola Riabchuk is a political and cultural analyst based in Kyiv, and currently a EURIAS Senior Visiting Fellow at the IWM. His most recent book, Gleichschaltung. Authoritarian Consolidation in Ukraine, 2010-2012, was published in both Ukrainian and English.
Discussants:
Ivan Krastev
Chair of the Board, Centre for Liberal Strategies, Sofia; IWM Permanent Fellow
Christian Ultsch
Head of the Foreign Politics Department, Die Presse
Further Reading:
Ukraine: „Fortführung der Revolution von ’89“
Ukraine: Across the Dividing Lines
Zerstörte Illusionen
Statement of the Ukrainian Centre of the International PEN
