러시아ㆍ유라시아

In early 1992, a series of Ukrainian parliamentary measures established the symbolic rupture between the new state and the Ukrainian SSR by adopting the state symbols associated with the Ukrainian People's Republic. Its independence was proclaimed by the Central Rada just before the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk, a separate peace treaty, which was signed on Feburary 9, 1918 by the Ukrainian representatives and Germany. This treaty was a significant event in the history of Ukrainian nationalism, as only a fully independent state could conclude an international treaty. Soviet Russia, which also signed a separate treaty on March 3, 1918 at Brest-Litovsk, was forced to recognize the Ukrainian People's Republic. Two treaties of Brest-Litovsk are, therefore, to be analyzed in this work, which brings into focus Ukrainian nationalism and self-determination. The latter, in particular, had been exploited fully during the World War I to disintegrate Russian Empire by Germany and Bolsheviks alike. The failure of the Ukrainians to achieve permanent independent statehood during the upheaval caused by World War I was, in large measure, a result of the underdevelopment of the national movement. Ukrainian lacked a substantial middle class despite considerable economic development. The Ukrainian national movement hardly evoked widespread response either from the peasant or from the industrial worker. It remained the creation of a small but devoted band of intellectuals drawn predominantly from the teaching and literary professions. The movement, lacking any sold support at home, was compelled to seek foreign patronage, turning unwillingly to Germany since Brest-Litovsk peace and to Poland after the defeat of the former in opposition to Soviet Russia.