Russia’s Wars Against Ukraine. Historical Parallels

Ivan Sichen

The analysis of the course of Russia’s war against Ukraine confirms Moscow’s de facto inability to achieve its goals. The failure of the Kremlin’s “blitzkrieg” and the intensification of the negative effects of Western sanctions on the Russian economy are forcing the Putin regime to seek a way out. Evidence of this is certain changes in Russia’s position in negotiations with Ukraine on the terms of peace. In particular, this concerns Moscow’s gradual moving from non-alternative ultimatums to Kyiv to trying to find compromises on certain issues.

However, Russia is in no way abandoning its strategic goals towards Ukraine, but only changing the tactics to achieve them. Currently, such tactics include attempts to seize the eastern and southern regions of our country, the destruction of its infrastructure and economic potential, as well as terror against civilians. In this way, Moscow is trying to destroy Ukraine and completely eliminate its independence and sovereignty. As before, this has been a “sacred” goal of Russia since the Tsardom of Muscovy and to the present day. That is why it has been, is and will be a mortal enemy for Ukraine until Russia finally leaves the historical arena.

We will not go into historical antiquity. Russia’s current war against Ukraine is a manifestation of the brutal nature of Russism (Russian fascism). However, as we know from history, this is not the first case of the Russian horde’s trying to destroy our state by a full-scale military invasion. In this regard, the most illustrative was the attack of Soviet Russia on the Ukrainian People’s Republic in 1917–1918. In fact, the situation at that time was in many ways similar to today’s events in Ukraine. However, the circumstances of that time and today’s ones differ greatly, which gives our country much better opportunities in the confrontation with Russia.

What are the similarities and differences between Russia’s wars against Ukraine in 1917–1918 and 2022? Let’s look at this question in more detail for a better understanding – what to expect next.

Both the first and second Russian wars had and continue to pursue similar goals, namely, the elimination of Ukraine’s independence and sovereignty as an integral state and restoration of Russian control over it.

However, while the Russian Bolsheviks openly acknowledged the plans, the current Putin regime disguises them as “ensuring the security of the Russian Federation”. Both then and now, Russia’s actions are justified by the “struggle against Ukrainian nationalists”: in the first case – “bourgeois” and in the second – “Nazi”.

As part of the implementation of its plans, Russia used and continues to use the internal problems of the Ukrainian People’s Republic and present-day Ukraine. As a hundred years ago, they include: contradictions between different political forces over fundamental issues of the country’s development; personal ambitions of individual politicians who put their own interests above the state; the spread of pro-Russian (and previously – left and pro-Soviet) sentiments among the population of eastern and southern regions of Ukraine.

However, unlike the UPR, which in fact disintegrated from internal strife, Russia’s attack on modern Ukraine only united Ukrainian society. At this, even the Russian-speaking and formerly pro-Russian population of Ukraine unanimously opposed the Russian fascist occupiers. A striking manifestation of this situation is the heroic defense of Kharkiv by the city’s residents in 2022, while in 1917–1918 it was the mainstay of the Russian Bolsheviks in Ukraine.

Mariupol remains the same example of resistance to Moscow’s aggression. The same is true about Kherson, Melitopol and Berdyansk, which were temporarily occupied but not broken by Russia. All this is completely different even from 2014, when the number of local authorities of Crimea, Donetsk and Luhansk sided with the Russian invaders.

Basically, the Russian offensive on the UPR was carried out in the same directions as in today’s Ukraine. Thus, in December 1917 near the northern and eastern borders of the UPR was formed “Southern Revolutionary Front to Combat Counter-Revolution” with Russian troops (Red Guard) in Gomel, Bryansk, Voronezh and on the outskirts of the Donbas. Another such district was Kharkiv, which was captured by the Bolsheviks.

After that strikes were inflicted: from Kharkiv towards Poltava; from Gomel and Bryansk – to Chernihiv, Hlukhiv and Konotop; from Voronezh – to the Donbas. At the same time, Bolshevik uprisings were raised in a number of left-bank cities in Ukraine, as well as in Odesa and Mykolayiv. As a result, in January 1918, almost the entire left-bank part of Ukraine, including the western Donbas, was captured by Russia. And in early February 1918, the Red Guard entered Kyiv. And then Russian troops captured southern Ukraine and Odesa.

Today, in addition to the above-mentioned directions, Russian troops have invaded Ukraine from the Crimea and attacked Kyiv from the territory of Belarus (by the way, from the same Gomel region through the Ukrainian Chernobyl). However, unlike in 1917–1918, the Armed Forces of Ukraine managed to deter the enemy and inflict unacceptable losses on it. The reasons for the failures of Moscow’s military plans have been repeatedly covered by the media, so we will not dwell on them. Let us note only that with its heroic actions, Ukraine has completely broken the myth of Russia’s “invincibility”.

In 2022, Russia and its troops continue to use methods of intimidation and genocide of the Ukrainian population and all their other opponents in Ukraine, as well as looting locals, industrial enterprises, shops and warehouses. All this took place in 1917–1918 and is well known from history. In particular, the mass terror in Kyiv and Odesa by the Red Guards and the Bolshevik punitive authorities was an example of Russia’s actions. At this, the historic center of Odesa (by the way, the second Russian-speaking city in Ukraine after Kharkiv) was purposefully destroyed by artillery strikes by the invaders. And this is not to mention the raids of the so-called food detachments from Petrograd (St. Petersburg) and Moscow to seize food in Ukraine, which was forcibly taken from the peasants.

The same thing is happening now in the Russian-occupied territories of Ukraine. This is shown daily by our media and is no secret to anyone. However, the looting of the occupied areas of the Donbas was started in 2014 by Moscow, which not only did not hide it, but also openly demonstrated as “successes” of its actions. Representatives of local authorities, Ukrainian activists, Anti-Terrorist Operation/Joint Forces Operation members, former officers of the Ukrainian security forces and journalists are similarly persecuted in the occupied territories. However, this only intensifies the resistance movement against Russia, which has become much larger than in 1917–1918.

In both cases of full-scale wars with Russia, its support from Western countries was important for Ukraine. Such support took various forms and was quite controversial, but in one way or another it played a powerful role in preserving Ukrainian statehood.

In March 1918, Russia’s offensive against Ukraine was halted by the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk, which was imposed by Berlin on Petrograd under the threat of its capture and destruction of Bolshevik rule. Under the treaty, Germany and Soviet Russia recognized the independence of the Ukrainian People’s Republic, Russian-Bolshevik troops were withdrawn from Ukraine, and Berlin guaranteed its security and sovereignty by deploying its military presence on Ukrainian territory.

Unfortunately, as a result of Germany’s defeat in the First World War and the revolution in the country, the treaty was terminated in the autumn of 1918, which allowed Russia to resume the war against Ukraine.

Now almost the entire Western world is on Ukraine’s side, and, in fact, has formed a single coalition against Russia. And this applies not only to political and economic sanctions against the Russian Federation, the supply of weapons to Ukraine and financial assistance, but also the possibility of introducing NATO peacekeeping forces on Ukrainian territory.

But even without this, US and EU sanctions have already dealt a devastating blow to Russia’s economy, and modern Western weapons have been one of the key factors in disrupting Russia’s “blitzkrieg” and halting Russian offensive in almost all directions. And our current partners are in no way going to leave Ukraine or stop the pressure on Russia, and only increase it.

In general, these circumstances indicate a much stronger position of today’s Ukraine than they were in 1917–1918. In turn, this gives Ukraine a real chance to avoid the fate of the UPR and win over Russia. We just have to use it.