Українознавство (Jul 2019)
Ukraine in Geopolitics of Leading States during World War I (1914—1918)
Abstract
World War I (1914–1918) drastically changed the global geopolitical structure. A number of previously subdued nations including Ukrainians were enabled to establish independent states. Traditionally, Ukrainian historiography paid much attention to internal political processes of the period, neglecting potential problems of the Ukrainian state in case of possible victory of the Entente, or Central Powers; the place of the Ukrainian problem in the geopolitics of the belligerent states; their vision of Ukraine in future; the reflection of this vision in their real policy towards Ukraine. Therefore, it is important to consider geopolitical plans of the so-called leading states (Russian Empire, Germany, Austro-Hungary, France, and Great Britain) to complete a picture of struggle for national liberation, which finally resulted in restoration of Ukrainian independence. There may be no doubts that the Russian Empire as a member of victorious Entente would have suppressed not only Ukrainian statehood but Ukrainian national aspirations as well. Unlike Poland, Baltic States, Finland, Czechoslovakia, and Yugoslavia, members of the Entente never considered Ukraine as an independent state, or even a federated part of Russia. The Russian victory could have even put an end to the history of Ukraine as a geographical region, and Ukrainians as a separate nation. On the other hand, there was a minor chance for Ukraine to become an independent state through subjection to Germany or Austro-Hungary in case of their triumph. Although history often proved that such initial limited statehood could transform into a real one, German Army operations in Ukraine and restoration of the Central Rada to power provided a chance for the above mentioned elaborations. Even in the presence of German troops, Ukraine had a certain possibility to develop as a fully-fledged sovereign state, and the history of Hetman Skoropadskyi’s regime proved it. However, Germany’s defeat on November 11, 1918 ruined those chances. Ukraine had to defend its independence by fighting numerous enemies advancing on all sides.
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