Vladimir Putin no relation Russo-Ukrainian War
Post-Soviet conflicts
According to the scholar Marcel H. Van Herpen, the end of the Soviet Union also marked the end of Russian colonialism and imperialism.As the Soviet Union began to collapse, social disintegration and political instability fueled a surge in ethnic conflict. Social and economic disparities, along with ethnic differences, created an upsurge in nationalism within groups and discrimination between groups. In particular, disputes over territorial boundaries have been the source of conflict between states experiencing political transition and upheaval. Territorial conflicts can involve several different issues: the reunification of ethnic groups which have been separated, restoration of territorial rights to those who experienced forced deportation, and restoration of boundaries arbitrarily changed during the Soviet era. Territorial disputes remain significant points of controversy as minority groups consistently oppose election outcomes and seek autonomy and self-determination. In addition to territorial disputes and other structural causes of conflict, legacies from the Soviet and pre-Soviet eras, along with the suddenness of the actual sociopolitical change, have resulted in conflict throughout the region. As each group experiences dramatic economic reform and political democratization, there has been a surge in nationalism and interethnic conflict. Overall, the fifteen independent states that emerged after the collapse of the Soviet Union face problems stemming from uncertain identities, contested boundaries, apprehensive minorities, and an overbearing Russian hegemony.Russia under Vladimir Putin, who has termed the dissolution of the USSR as "the greatest geopolitical catastrophe of the 20th century", began to revive Russian nationalism and irredentism, leading them to invade Georgia in 2008, Ukraine in 2014, illegally annexing Crimea, and Ukraine again in 2022.
no relation