As the crisis over Russia's invasion of Ukraine escalates, I thought it'd be useful to add my two hryvnias.
I'll be posting occasional news items I think are enlightening from my perspective as an investigative journalist of partly Ukrainian descent.
Here's an interesting take from Time Magazine. It reveals that only 15 percent of Russians actually wanted their government to intervene to help Ukraine's deposed president, Viktor Yanukovych, stay in power.
In the survey, conducted by the Kremlin's own pollster, 73 percent said Russia shouldn't interfere in what they believed was an internal matter for Ukrainians. (Russian speakers and Google Translate users can read the complete results here.)
The poll was carried out Feb. 1 and 2, before mass protests in Ukraine forced Yanukovych to flee to Russia. Ukraine's new authorities have issued an arrest warrant for Yanukovych for mass murder in connection with the killing of nearly 100 protesters by police and government snipers as he clung to power.
Russian president Vladimir Putin has vociferously denounced the overthrow of his ally Yanukovych and sent thousands of Russian soldiers into Ukraine's Crimea region shortly after.
The poll also found that 30 percent of respondents in Moscow and St. Petersburg predicted Russia could see a similar protest movement, particularly if faced with a severe economic crisis or poverty.
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