The standoff in Ukraine: Roots in history

Russian psyche, moulded bloodily through the centuries, regards European expansionism as an existential threat

With Russia continuing its military build-up of about 100,000 troops and warfighting equipment in and around Ukraine, the United States (US) and the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) both conveyed, on January 26, their written proposals to Russia to resolve the crisis.

Moscow has issued a demand list, too, but Russian Foreign Minister Sergey V Lavrov commented on his ministry website that the American document contained “no positive reaction” to Russia’s main demands, which include NATO explicitly ruling out the possibility of Ukraine and others ever joining the alliance. Moscow has warned of “retaliatory measures” if Washington and its allies reject