From Euromaiden Press BY BOHDAN BEN
Edited by: Sonia Maryn, Kate Ryabchiy: [editorial]The ideology of Ukrainians and Russians as “brotherly nations” is now dead, just like the once-popular idea of the “brotherhood” of Poles and Russians. Ukrainians were like Scots in the British Empire, helping build and maintain it, but that time has now passed. This means that Ukrainians are finally taking ownership of their state, ending the centuries-long hostility to their empire-building elites. About this and more in our interview with world-known historian Serhii Plokhii. [/editorial]
After the Russian Empire conquered Ukraine in the 18th century, the myth of a triune Rus emerged to justify the emerging empire. Ironically, some of Kyiv’s church elites contributed to westernizing the Russian empire. Still, eventually, the notion of brotherly peoples and the Great Russian nation turned into a tool to oppress Ukrainians. To read more about the evolution of the myth of brotherly nations in the Russian empire and USSR:
EP: How, in current circumstances, should Ukrainians deal with the fact that, in the 17th century, some Cossacks allowed the Russian Empire to use them against the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth by concluding the Pereiaslav Treaty with Moscow? And that Russia is now exploiting this to speak about alleged “brotherly” Russian and Ukrainian nations?
Modern Russia is not even talking about the Ukrainians being a “brotherly” people. It were Soviet ideologues who promoted this notion. But nowadays, Russia claims Ukrainians and Russians are one people. When Putin says that Russians and Ukrainians are one people, he does not say that they are brothers. He says that Ukrainians are Russians and that Ukrainians do not exist and should not exist. The legitimacy of Ukraine at any level is rejected. Among other beliefs, it is said that Lenin invented Ukraine, and there are major accusations directed at Lenin that he generally tolerated something akin to the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic.
Voice of Ukraine 