Russian Intervention in Ukraine Implications on European Security Order

Abstract

The Ukrainian crisis, in the contemporary decade has emerged as a greatest challenge to European Security. Ukraine has become the center of the Great Power Struggle. The Eastwards stretch of the Euro Atlantic institutions has triggered Russia. Moscow shares deep historical, ethnic and cultural roots with Ukraine. Its strategic position, resources and transit routes assigns Ukraine with a pivotal position in Russia Foreign Policy agenda. This study highlights the geopolitical significance of Ukraine for Russia. It further investigates the sources and motivation behind Russia’s offensive posture in Kyiv. Russia under President Putin's regime is pursuing its ambitious Eurasian policy and Great Power status. Ukraine is the central element of Russia’s Eurasian policy. It views EU and NATO enlargement as encroachment of what it considers as its sphere of privilege interest. Russia’s offensive strategies in Ukraine, followed by the annexation of Crimea and extensive military buildup along its Eastern border indicates its clear dismissal of European security architecture which is built on Cold War era security regimes. It has shifted the balance of power in the region. This paper highlights that the inability of the European governance to curtail Russia’s hostile strategies has revealed the weakness of the current security order. Russia’s multipolar thesis contents with the liberal views held by the European