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URL:http://www.russianmix.com/events/viewevent/3725-ukraine-s-dilemma-the-euromaiden-s-call-among-bears-and-bullets/ 
DTSTART:20170719T183000
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SUMMARY:Ukraine's Dilemma: The Euromaiden's Call Among Bears and Bullets
DESCRIPTION:identify and align itself? Negotiations over a free trade and political association agreement with the European Union (EU) came to a halt in 2013 when Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych choseinstead to sign an agreement pursuing closer ties with Russia, a difference of billions over millions. Protesters poured out into the streets demanding his resignation, and Yanukovych responded harshly. The "Euromaiden" protests continued to grow in strength, increasing pressure on Yanukovych until he eventually fled the capital of Kyiv at the end of February 2014. 
As thousands of protesters rejoiced, ethno-linguistic divisions within the country's Ukrainian-speaking west and Russian-speaking east became much more pronounced. On March 1st, Russia approved the deployment of troops into Ukraine, annexing the Crimean peninsula and instigating a separatist state in the Donets Basin, aka the Donbass, near the Russian border. In response, the EU slapped strong economic sanctions against Russia which combined with low gas & oil prices, has had a crippling effect. The Russians in turned began to pour massive amounts of resources into propaganda campaigns, beefing up the access and reach of state-aligned media outlets like Sputnik and RT (formerly Russia Today). 
Fast-forward to 2017. A new element emerges in the form of cyber-warfare as fighting in eastern Ukraine continues to drag on.  A new geopolitical dynamic emerges with U.S. President Donald Trump seeking to improve ties with Russia while professing public admiration for Russian President Vladimir Putin while dismissing allegations of Russian cyber-attacks around the globe, including the United States. Ukraine itself also struggles to curb corrupt practices and establish stronger trade ties with it's neighbors while fending off new cyber-attacks, Russian military aggression, and political conflict.
Come join the Forum on International Affairs (FIA) as we explore Ukraine's relations with Europe and Russia, and dig deeper into it's current state of affairs. 
Questions To Consider:
1) How does Ukraine's historical ties to Russia influence it's politics?
2) What are the major economics issues facing Ukraine today?
3) How does Europe perceive relations with Ukraine? 4) How does ethnicity and language inform Ukraine's domestic politics?
5) With manufactured "fake news" articles being pumped out by propaganda outlets, how does the public determine what's real and what's not?
6) What does the future look like for Ukraine?
Reading Recommendations: Ukraine's Stalled Revolution: Kiev may talk like Brussels but it acts like Moscow - Foreign Affairs Disinformation across ages: Russia’s old but effective weapon of influence - Euromaiden Press The Day a Mysterious Cyberattack Crippled Ukraine - BBC News Trump Hands a Trade Victory to Putin at Ukraine's Expense - Newsweek 
Hackers Who Targeted Ukraine Clean Out Bitcoin Random Wallet - The Guardian
LOCATION:District of Columbia Government, 441 4th Street NW, Room 1117, Washington, DC, 20001
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