Realistic response to Crimea

After the break of Soviet Union, Russia remains a superpower whose nuclear arsenal poses an existential threat to any adversary. a few nations cannot be coerced by, say, the sudden appearance of a U.S. aircraft carrier group on the horizon including Russia.

The goal is to persuade Russia to give Crimea back, though it can be possible or not, we have to try to understand why Putin wanted it in the first place. When Ukraine emerged as a sovereign state from the breakup of the Soviet Union, it was agreed that the Russian navy would retain its bases on the Crimean Peninsula.

Ukraine is confused whether to join the EU or stay under Russia, After Viktor Yanukovych, Ukraine’s pro-Russian president, was deposed by a “people power” revolution, he declined to sign an agreement with the EU, it was perhaps inevitable that Putin would believe the status of those bases was in question, if it wasn’t under threat.

The rebel emerged against him, there are rallies everywhere to overthrow the Yanukovych government. He was replaced by Petro Poroshenko with revote. US intervenes to support EU, it seems like Ukraine prefers the EU than Russia therefore Russia cut down all the economic relations with Ukraine for example the gas pipe. People in Crimea desperately want to separate from Ukraine. With the intervention of Russia, Russia gets the economic penalty because Russia keeps on sending troops to Crimea warned by US President

Realism provides explanation over this case, state will do anything for power in order to survive by fulfilling their national interests here Moscow warns that it will do anything possible to protect the interests of Russia and Russians within Ukraine and Crimea by not letting Crimea to separate from Ukraine or Ukraine to sign agreement with EU. All national affairs are in conformity with the states own self interest. 

Russia wants crimea because they think its important for them to fulfil their national interest in this case is Russian’s security so by allowing it to escape would be too swallow, Putin claims this invasion towards Ukraine as necessary to protect Russian citizens and allies because Crimea does more than secure a warm-water port for Russian ships, port of Sevastopol in Crimea is important to Russian naval’s power, without this, Russia’s global military power would be virtually non-existent. 

Us foreign policy need realism¸ the unavoidable fact is that the United States has nothing to do or a relation to Ukraine rather than Ukraine to Russia, Americans have no desire and no reason to go to war with Russia over Crimea.

Seeing this through the three key concepts of Realism,

First is statism, in anarchy states compete against each other for power and security, more for one actor means less for another, that’s why Russia and EU fight over to get Ukraine apart from the principle of non intervention in the internal affairs of other sovereign state. Even so non intervention practice can’t be applied in relations between great powers and their neighbour. Putin realizes that Russia holds greater power in comparison to the Ukraine and therefore acts upon them without restriction.

Second is survival, waltz claims that states have security as their principal interest therefore they only seek specific amount of power to ensure their own survival, state is defensive actor, it might be thirsty over power but it will not seek power if it means harm their own security. For the past few years Russia’s foreign relations is all about pursuing national security. As stated before Russia sees how crucial and swallow it would be by letting Crimea out of their hand.

The last key concept is Self-help, in anarchic structure, self help is required as the principle of action, but in the term of providing for someone’s own security, the state will automatically be fuelling the insecurity of other states. States find it difficult to trust another states.