The Russian President makes policy in Ukraine, before the New arrives in Kiev at all. Of course Vladimir Putin decision, the Russian passports to be distributed to Eastern Ukrainians, a provocation for the newly elected President Volodimir Selenski. There is still more to it.

a Moscow defined by the Pass-decree the conflict in Eastern Ukraine in a new piece. So far, the Kremlin had shown him as a purely Ukrainian affair. Moscow denies supporting the separatists militarily and to control areas. If Putin, the state is offering now the self-proclaimed “people’s republics” inhabitants in the Donbass citizenship, this is an attack on Ukrainian sovereignty. He claims to have the citizens of these areas, so you can see the.

This can, but must not be a step in that direction is to assume open control of the territory. Many remember Georgia. there, Moscow had sent in 2008, troops with the justification of protecting Russian citizens. The were to become, by the Kremlin passes had been distributed in the breakaway regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia. Now a war to legitimize, in the Eastern Ukraine face-down cards? Putin’s decree will increase the uncertainty.

Putin is not white, how far the Ukrainians in the case of an escalation would go.

This insecurity helps Putin secondly, to gain more clarity about his new counterpart in Kiev, Volodimir Selenski,. He left after his election victory a week ago, no three days time. That Putin wrote to the decree even before the vote, suggests that he wasn’t going to endanger Selenskis chances against Petro Poroshenko. With the policy, a newcomer to the Ukrainian voters to connect the hope of a more relaxed relationship with Moscow, and again more power for the internal political problems of Ukraine. But de-escalation does not appear to be in Putin’s interest. The priced in the cost of the conflict for a long time – and pulls out an opponent in Kiev, the he can to demonize home, Use for his foreign policy Agenda.

Selenski is a factor of uncertainty for him. Putin don’t know how much the Ukrainians want to invest in peace and how far he would go in case of an escalation. With his Pass-decree, he could clear the conflict. He forces Selenski in addition to a harder line, which brings him closer to his predecessor, Petro Poroshenko. As Putin doubled the lead on the weekend at the silk road summit in Beijing and the Russian state moved to citizenship for all Ukrainians in recital, took of the future President in Kiev to counter-strike: He wanted to give all the peoples of the Ukrainian citizenship, the “suffering under the authoritarian and corrupt” regimes “in the first line of the Russians”.

While Putin so Selenski forces to make a commitment, does he the opposite. He wants to create with the new passports are actually the possibility for an open military intervention? He wants to secure the votes of potential New Russians? Or Pro-Russian rebels? Maybe Putin’s art handle is also just another cost to its taxpayers. Eastern Ukrainians with a Russian passport would have been entitled to social security benefits from Moscow. About 1.3 billion euros, has been attributed to Putin. For him, the investment is worth it. Now all of the puzzles about him, and not the New one in Kiev.

(editing Tamedia)

Created: 28.04.2019, 21:29 PM