Russia-Ukraine War – Two perspectives to rebuild Donbas region

In the Donbas, we see all of the essential elements for a future fratricidal conflict, similar to those in Lebanon, Bosnia, and Nagorno-Karabakh. Only after enough blood has flowed will they come to finally realize “getting it out of their system” was just not worth it.

To find a solution to the rivaling Donbas region, I propose two schools of thought to guide the process. One, I believe Ukraine should not yield off Donbas to Russia (or its puppet separatists) by force. Since it is a unique bilingual community they should be allowed legitimate self-determination that is decided by a democratic process, as opposed to a proxy war between Kyiv and Moscow.

Not creating and supporting warring factions to advance the interests of one of the two capitals such as the present pro-Russian independence movement in the Donbas we see today.

The second school of thought is that the conflict between Kyiv and Moscow being played out in the Donbas is an ever more increasingly horrific conflict of Ethnic hate. Crimea, in my opinion, is more of a fight over who owns the "sacred place". Crimea is seen as a sacred town that must be protected by the two warring factions. Therefore, it is pointless to have an election because the population is too homogenous. For the sake of peace, let the Russians have it.

Mention must be made that Ukraine has been an independent nation since 1991. Prior to that, it was Ukraine USSR (a republic within the country that was called the Soviet Union), and before that, it was referred to as Okraina, which implied the borderland of the Russian empire. Before that, it was Kievan Rus, which was part of the greater Rus. However ambiguous the history of Crimea is, peace is the option to all alternatives.

There are others who have the view that the territorial disputes today are more so related to social issues rather than border issues and are a direct consequence of the disintegration of the Soviet Union due to the messy and abrupt way that it happened. Do you agree with such people and how close it is to accuracy?

And others from Ukraine have also argued that the people of Ukraine have decided what should happen to their country. Millions have proven they would rather fight forever, be refugees, or dead rather than be slaves to the dictatorial machinations of Moscow. Ukrainians have decided to root the path of democracy– to give each and every citizen the opportunity to have a say in the governance of the country. And not a one-man show.

However, a shift to the West also poses some conflicting arguments which could be right or wrong depending on your philosophical outlook. A section of the West argues that there is a dichotomy in Western society where negotiation is the civilized path, yet Chamberlain’s attempts at negotiation with Hitler are framed derisively as “appeasement” policies for which Chamberlain is viewed as responsible for the spread of the Nazi Party.

Is there a possibility of negotiation in this ongoing war? Would Putin accept the same and under what conditions?

It is interesting to note that Russia invasion on 24 February 2022 and planned to be in Kyiv by the same afternoon, Kyiv in 3 days”, Ukraine down in three weeks, and the whole world holding breath, counting hours, glued to screens.