A new ‘Eastern question’
A new ‘Eastern question’

Summary/Abstract: Dov Lynch, EU Institute for Security Studies: Events in Ukraine tell three stories that, woven together, reflect the changes occurring in Europe and pose a new ‘Eastern question’. The first story relates the birth of a revitalised Ukraine. The two candidates in the elections, Viktor Yushchenko and Viktor Yanukovych, in themselves do not signal this birth – but 17 days of peaceful demonstrations in Kyiv and other cities do, as does the decision of the Ukrainian Supreme Court to call for a new second round on 26 December. No matter the outcome of the second round – and one can expect further twists and turns before (this piece was written before 26 December) a new president is inaugurated – the ‘Orange Revolution’ signals a deep change, one of quality rather than quantity. As a result of a triumphant exercise in people’s democracy, the paradigm of politics in Ukraine is different. At the most basic level, Ukraine has finally realised its independence. The dignity and pride manifested since November could not contrast more with the tarnished politics of the Kuchma era. One should not be lured into thinking that the scale of political and economic problems facing Ukraine has lessened, or that the country is any less divided in orientation. Still, a great European country is back.

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