Ukraine President Volodymr Zelensky, Reuters
Nicolai N. Petro, National Interest: Will Nationalism Poison Ukraine's New President?
Volodymr Zelensky’s election win was a result of Ukraine’s pent-up demand for normalcy with Russia. But now it looks like Ukraine's new president is succumbing to nationalist pressure.
Ever since Volodymyr Zelensky’s upset victory in April, Ukrainians have been wondering whether their newly elected president will take new approaches to resolve the conflict with Russia. His thumping victory over Petro Poroshenko, who tried to dismiss all of his opponents as puppets of Russian Vladimir Putin puppets, uncovered a strong, untapped desire to end the Russophobia that has been porminant with over the past five years. During that time, the Poroshenko and other senior government officials routinely referred to Ukrainians who wanted better relations with Russia as a “fifth column.”
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WNU Editor: The above post by Nicolai N. Petro is my must read post for today. Volodymr Zelensky won in a massive landslide on the promise of ending the war, getting rid of all the anti-Russian laws that were passed by former President Poroshenko and his parliament, and a return to normal relations with Russia. If he breaks these promises .... and it looks like he is .... the consequences will be the following. (1) Not only an intensification of the war in the eastern part of the country, but a conflict that will spread to the rest of eastern Ukraine and the southern part of the country where Ukrainian-Russians dominate. (2) In the past five years millions of young Ukrainians have left the country and/or planning to do so. Breaking these promises will only accelerate this migration. (3) If Ukraine hopes to achieve any level of prosperity, they must work with Russia. Persecuting and discriminating the Ukrainian-Russian population is not going to earn President Zelensky any friends in Russia, and definitely not in the Kremlin. Bottom line .... President Zelensky has 4-6 months to deliver on his promises. If he breaks them, the anger that will be directed at him and his government will be enormous.
