Ukraine: a place where sovereignty has been challenged

Question 1

Context:

Answer 1

• A major producer of food
• GDP per capita has been falling in recent years
• population is also in decline due to net migration loss and natural decrease

Question 2

What happened to the economy in 2009?

Answer 2

Contracted nearly 15% - one of worst economic performances in the world
Ukraine has struggled to reform economically since gaining independence from the Soviet Union in 1991 - there has been resistance to reform from the government and legislature, which is very divided and has led to some backtracking

Question 3

What happened in 1991?

Answer 3

Ukraine gained independence (Seccession) from the soviet union and gained the peninsula of Crimea, however since independence, Ukraine has struggled to achieve democracy, liberty and economic reform

Question 4

Why has Ukraine struggled to achieve stability, sovereignty and territorial integrity?

Answer 4

• internal political division - Russian speaking areas in the East and the Ukrainian speaking West
• two different ethnic groups - Ukrainian(78% of population) and Russian (17.3%)
• inability to build a national identity and develop strong state mechanisms: there has been attempts to rig elections, unpopular gov policies, and very violent demonstrations