2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine

• 1. Euromaidan And Political Fallout

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  On the 21st of November 2013, Ukrainian president Viktor Yanukovych refused to sign an association agreement with the European Union. This decision triggered a protest movement that grew into the largest democratic mass movement in Europe since 1989. The demonstrations eventually culminated in the Revolution of Dignity, which removed Yanukovych from power following a majority vote in the Verkhovna Rada. In the aftermath, Russian-backed groups began organizing demonstrations across Crimea, Donetsk, Luhansk, Kharkiv, and Odesa starting at the end of February 2014. Historian William Jay Risch notes that rumors aimed against the new government spread on TV and social media by local elites and Russian state media throughout Donbas. Russia actively supported separatism using high-level actors like Kremlin advisers Vladislav Surkov and Sergey Glazyev. These figures organized pro-Russian protests where attendees included Russian citizens who crossed the border to support activists. Ukraine's police and border guards denied entry to more than 8,200 Russians between 4 and the 25th of March 2014. On the 27th of March 2014, National Security and Defence Council Secretary Andriy Parubiy stated that between 500 and 700 Russians were being denied entry daily. Public opinion polls conducted by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology from 8, the 18th of February 2014 found that only 12% of those polled favored union with Russia overall. Support for such a union was significantly higher in certain regions, reaching 41.0% in Crimea and 33.2% in Donetsk Oblast.

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• 2. Crimean Annexation Process

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  Following the removal of Ukrainian president Viktor Yanukovych on the 22nd of February 2014, unidentified militants began taking control of the Crimean Peninsula starting on the 26th of February. Vladimir Putin later confirmed these troops were Russian soldiers. A referendum regarding joining the Russian Federation resulted in an official turnout of 83 percent and a 96 percent affirmative vote. The Crimean Parliament declared independence from Ukraine on the 17th of March and asked to join the Russian Federation. Russia and Crimea signed a treaty of accession on the 18th of March 2014. On the 21st of March, the accession treaty was ratified, marked by a 30 gun salute under an executive order of the Russian President. The United Nations General Assembly passed a non-binding resolution by 100 to 11 votes declaring the referendum invalid and the incorporation illegal. Around 3,000 people had fled Crimea by April 1, and 80 percent of them were Crimean Tatars. By the 20th of May, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees reported that about 10,000 people had been displaced. Teams from the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe assisted internally displaced persons who resettled in western Ukraine.

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• 3. Donbas Separatist Insurgency

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  On the 12th of April, a group of masked militants led by former officer Igor Girkin captured the executive committee building, police department, and SBU office in Sloviansk. Ukrainian Internal Affairs Minister Arsen Avakov labeled these gunmen terrorists and swore to use special forces to retake the buildings. Seizures of government buildings occurred in other cities including Kramatorsk, Druzhkivka, Horlivka, Mariupol, and Yenakiieve. Vitaly Yarema stated that Russian Special Forces units, including the 45th Parachute Guards Regiment, were operating on Ukrainian territory. On the 16th of April, the number of Russian special forces troops was said to be 450. A counter-offensive by government forces on the 2nd of May resulted in the downing of two government helicopters and casualties on both sides. President Oleksandr Turchynov said many separatists were killed, injured, or arrested. Fighting continued through June until the signing of the Minsk Protocol in early September established a ceasefire. The disputed referendum on Donetsk Oblast status held on the 11th of May saw 89 percent vote in favor of self-rule according to representatives of the Donetsk People's Republic. Turnout was reported at 75 percent. OSCE monitors did not observe the referendum due to volatile conditions following skirmishes in Mariupol.

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• 4. Regional Conflict Dynamics

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  Unrest first gripped Kharkiv city on the 22nd of February 2014 when Euromaidan protesters occupied the regional state administration building. Later that day, several thousand pro-Ukrainian protesters tried to topple a statue of Vladimir Lenin opposite the building. Several taxi drivers defended the monument, injuring some protesters. By the next day, several thousand pro-Russian protesters gathered to protect the statue. Pro-Russian activists stormed the RSA building on the 1st of March and raised the Russian flag before police regained control by evening. On the 6th of April, pro-Russian protesters stormed and occupied the RSA building again. The next day, they unilaterally declared independence as the Kharkiv People's Republic. By the 8th of April, Ukrainian special forces had retaken the building and arrested seventy protesters. Mayor Hennadiy Kernes was shot in the back while cycling on the 28th of April 2014. He later recovered after receiving medical treatment in Israel. In Odesa Oblast, a rally by about 2,000 pro-government demonstrators was attacked by about 300 anti-Maidan militants with batons and helmets on the 2nd of May. Both sides clashed in central streets, throwing petrol bombs and firing automatic weapons. The anti-Maidan protesters retreated to and occupied the Trade Unions House. From the roof, militants shot at and tossed rocks at protesters below. The building caught fire, resulting in 43 deaths total.

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• 5. International Response And Media Narratives

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  Militants who took over government buildings in Donetsk were consistently labeled separatists and terrorists by the Ukrainian government and western media. Russian media and officials referred to these same protesters as supporters of federalization. Russian news broadcasts featured claims of foreign involvement on the side of the Ukrainian government. In Ukrainian media, the derogatory term Colorado beetle was used for pro-Russian demonstrators referencing the Ribbon of St George they wore. Starting in Russian media, the wave of unrest came to be known as the Russian Spring. A poll conducted from 14 to the 26th of March by the International Republican Institute found that 26, 27 percent of those polled in southern and eastern Ukraine viewed Euromaidan protests as a coup d'état. Only 5 percent of respondents in eastern Ukraine felt that Russian-speakers were definitely under pressure or threat. 93 percent of westerners and 70 percent of easterners polled said they wanted Ukraine to remain united according to a comprehensive Pew Research Centre survey released on the 8th of May. Despite international criticism of the 16th of March referendum on Crimean status, 91 percent of Crimeans polled thought the vote was free and fair. OSCE monitors observed that city administration buildings remained heavily fortified by armed groups throughout April.

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