DISINFO: Ukraine never existed before the 20th century, it was created by the Bolsheviks
SUMMARY
Ukraine, as an independent, sovereign state, was unknown to history until the early 20th century.
The creation of the Ukrainian state is the fault of the Bolsheviks, and Vladimir Lenin personally.
RESPONSE
Recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative designed to denigrate the history of Ukraine and its statehood, as well as to justify the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine and occupation in parts of Ukraine via illegitimate referenda. It offers an absurd interpretation of the Russian military invasion of Ukraine with the use of the classic disinformation narrative about the Russian world.
Ukraine is a well-defined nation with a long history and its own literature and identity. The history of Ukraine dates back to the era of the Kyivan Rus’ in the 9th-13th centuries. A fully independent Ukraine only emerged in the 20th century, after long periods of successive domination by Poland-Lithuania, Russia, and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR).
In the aftermath of World War I and the disintegration of the Russian and Austro-Hungarian Empires two states were created: the Ukrainian People's Republic (UNR) and the West Ukrainian People's Republic. They merged into a unified state - the Ukrainian People's Republic - on 22 January 1919. Under Lenin's leadership at the beginning of the 20th century, Ukraine was occupied by the Bolsheviks and for decades was under communist control.
Under Lenin's leadership at the beginning of the 20th century, Ukraine was occupied by the Bolsheviks and for decades was under communist control. When the Soviet Union began to unravel in 1990–91, the legislature of the Ukrainian SSR declared sovereignty (July 16, 1990) and then full independence (August 24, 1991). With the dissolution of the USSR in December 1991, Ukraine gained full independence which was also recognised by Russia under late president Yeltsin of the Russian Federation.
The "all-Russian big nation" is an imperial Russian and Russian revanchist ideology that is a favoured pro-Kremlin narrative aimed at weakening the national identity of Ukrainians, as well as undermining the state sovereignty.
Ukraine is a sovereign and independent state with a democratically-elected president and parliament. Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity are respected by almost the whole world with Russia as the key exception.
Pro-Kremlin media outlets often cast doubts on Ukrainian statehood and claim that Ukraine either does not exist as a state or is going to tumble down very soon, or it is a colony of the West.
Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity have been violated by continuous acts of aggression by Russian armed forces since 2014 and culminated in an aggressive full-scale attack on a neighbouring country on February 24, 2022.