05-10-2014, 05:25 PM
From a political scientist - it has an anti-"Eastern Ukrainian elites" bias but I think still gives some good insight:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/monk...nvenience/
About the author:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/monk...nvenience/
In short, since Ukraine’s independence, regional differences and the specter of separation could be exploited for electoral gain, particularly by eastern elites. When in control of key institutions in the capital, however, eastern Ukrainian elites supported a highly centralized system of governance, as was evident during Yanukovych’s stay in power. Once out of power again, elites again exploit Ukraine’s centrifugal tendencies, claiming more power to the regions on an ad hoc basis.
Not surprisingly, politicians that profit from the conflict over regional identity have not articulated a clear political program for decentralization, federalization or addressing language issues on a long term or compromise basis. Keeping the agenda opaque and identity-based means that that clientelistic and corrupt practices can reign rather than actual programmatic politics.
Regional differences in Ukraine were amplified during the 1994 and 2004 presidential elections, though nothing like on the scale of events of 2014 when Russia’s active involvement is moving the two neighbors ever close to direct warfare. Russia favors what it calls “federalization” – which in practice would amount to ‘confederation’ – to create pro-Russian enclaves within Ukraine and block Ukraine’s integration with the EU by granting federal units extensive degree of power (e.g. to conduct foreign policy). In practice, this would then offer Moscow a veto offer Ukraine’s foreign policy.
A more effective way to reform the center-periphery relations would be through systematic and comprehensive decentralization — including devolution of budgetary resources — aimed at removing regional concerns from a bargaining process complicated by high geopolitical stakes. But this is a difficult time to engage in a thorough and systematic overhaul, due to Russia’s strategy of destabilizing Ukraine on the regional, if not national level. What is needed is sufficient political will and determination of the national and regional elites to, at last, break this apparently never-ending, highly disruptive cycle.
About the author:
Dr Wolczuk specialises in East European politics. Currently she is researching relations between the EU and the post-Soviet countries within the framework of the European Neighbourhood Policy and the Eastern Partnership. She is also conducting research on Russia's role in the 'shared neighbourhood' and any potential impact for EU's role and policies in the post-Soviet space.
Previously she studied the dynamics of state-building in Ukraine (especially constitutional reforms, institutional framework, legislative-executive relations), as well as the conception of nationhood and national identity in Central and Eastern Europe. Her research interests also included Polish-Ukrainian relations in the context of EU enlargement and relations between Ukraine and the enlarged EU.
Dr Wolczuk contributed to numerous policy-related initiatives and cooperated with and advised a number of UK governmental bodies, international organisations and think-tanks on East European politics, the consequences of EU enlargement and the relations between the EU and its eastern neighbours.
