Frag Out! Magazine
Issue link: https://fragout.uberflip.com/i/1528235
Some point to 2014, when Russia annexed Crimea and started the hybrid war in eastern Ukraine. Others believe that Ukraine's 2004 and 2013 revolutions, known as the Maidans, marked the early stages of this confrontation, albeit on a political level. Some experts even include the trade and energy conflicts of 2006- 2012 as preparatory stages for the future full-scale war. Some argue that Ukrainians are trying to narratively construct a continuous struggle of the Ukrainian nation against Russia for its statehood, dating back to the early 20th century. Regardless, it's a fact that the beginning of direct military actions between Russia and Ukraine occurred with the events in Donbas in the spring and summer of 2014, known as the "Russian Spring". In the article, found in Frag Out! Magazine #43, I discuss the state of the Ukrainian government as of early 2014 and describe the process of reforms and changes that took place within Ukraine's Armed Forces during the conflict in Donbas between 2014 and 2022. In today's article, I will try to shed light on the other side of this conflict – the so-called separatist forces, i.e., the armed groups that appeared in Donbas in the spring of 2014 and later evolved into what is now known as the 1st Donetsk and 2nd Luhansk Army Corps of the Russian Federation. We will explore the formation of these "People's Republic Armed Forces," their origins, their foundations, and how they have changed over time. Introduction. The Story of False Separatism For the sake of clarity, we will divide the history of the "people's republics" and their armed forces into several stages. If we were to summarize these events briefly, we could say that the entire history of so-called Donbas separatism is the story of Russia's attempt to exploit the regional differences of local residents to subjugate all of Ukraine. Russia used the uniqueness of Donbas as a region to disguise its aggressive actions. However, considering Donbas has always been a region of very low grassroots social activity, Russia could never count on broad, active support from the local population for its actions. Russia's attempts to destabilize Ukraine initially relied on very small, marginal pro-Russian activist groups within Ukraine, supported financially from outside. When this approach failed, Russia had to get directly involved. In a sense, the history of "Donbas separatism" as a Russian special operation against Ukraine can be considered a failure of Russia's concept of hybrid warfare. What was meant to destabilize and fragment Ukraine, with the subsequent integration of its parts into Russia, instead led to the elimination of pro-Russian sentiments in areas controlled by Kyiv, united Ukrainian society, and forced Russia into direct involvement in the conflict. What was supposed to give Russia victory at low cost and break up Ukraine without the use of an army instead led to a situation where Russia was left with no choice but to invade a foreign country openly, bearing www.fragoutmag.com