The Ukrainian people do not want further or deeper ties with Russia, period. Your regurgitation of Russian talking points just shows that you have no idea what you are talking about.
The actual problem here is that Ukrainian people are not a monolith. People in certain regions undeniably do want to be part of Russia, or at least have deeper ties.
This is not a Russian talking point. Authorities in Kyiv flat out concede this problematic dilemma.
You cannot argue in good faith that the average resident of Crimea is pro-Ukraine. If you refuse to believe this, I cannot help you. Why do you think Putin's annexation in 2014 went so smoothly? The population was by and large positively receptive.
Yeah, great. In reality, if you as anyone in basically all of Ukraine (except for 'little green men' and the odd lover of soviet times), you get a clear message about how they've preferred a westward cultural and economic trajectory, and that ever since the war (or Crimea, depends on who you're asking), Russia is the enemy.
> Authorities in Kyiv flat out concede this problematic dilemma.
Oleksiy Danilov, the secretary of Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council, outlined in 2022 the plan to reintegrate Crimea. Assuming Ukraine could recapture it. It includes deportation of pro Russians.
Feb. 4, 2014: Amid rioting on the Maidan in Kiev, YouTube carries Assistant Secretary of State Victoria Nuland’s last minute instructions to U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Geoffrey Pyatt regarding the U.S. pick for new Ukrainian prime minister, Arseniy Yatsenyuk (aka “Yats”) and other plans for the imminent coup d’etat in Kiev. When Pyatt expresses concern about EU misgivings about mounting a coup, Nuland says “Fuck the EU.” She then apologizes to the EU a day or two later — for the profanity, not for the coup. She also says that Vice President Joe Biden will help “glue this thing together”, meaning the coup.
