REVIEW: Donbas In Flames

Home  |  Book  |  Reviews

Reviews

Please use the Enter Comment facility below to give us a review on the Donbas In Flames section.

We appreciate all the reviews. Interesting reviews, for or against the ideas expressed in this section, will be accepted for public display on this page.

Summary

This AI summary is generated by Microsoft Edge Copilot:

**The Donbas Diversion — Summary of a Calculated Risk**

After the swift seizure of Crimea by the "little green men," Russia faced a major risk: Ukrainian forces might retaliate through the **Isthmus of Perekop**, potentially linking with their navy and loyal army units in Crimea. Such a move would likely have forced Russia to commit regular troops, escalating the situation into a full-scale war—possibly inviting U.S. or NATO involvement.

**Strategic Distraction: Donbas**  
To avoid this, Russia shifted global attention eastward to **Donbas**, a Russophone region in eastern Ukraine:

- Though **majority ethnic Ukrainian**, Donbas had deep Russian cultural ties and widespread Russian language use.
- Post-Euromaidan laws perceived as anti-Russian stoked unrest.
- Following the **Crimean annexation**, protests escalated into armed conflict.

**Proxy Warfare**  
Russia publicly advocated self-determination for Russian speakers, while covertly supplying weapons and soldiers ("volunteers") to the separatists. The resulting proxy war diverted Ukraine's military focus away from Crimea.

**Cost of Diversion**  
While Russia had no intent to annex Donbas like Crimea, the conflict brought severe consequences:

- **Over 10,000 deaths** (on both sides)
- **Millions displaced**
- Region left politically fractured and economically devastated

**Outcome**  
Russia cemented its hold on Crimea by drawing Ukraine into a grinding, unresolved war in the Donbas. What began as a diversion evolved into a prolonged and bloody standoff, one that still simmers today.

References

See Donbas In Flames.