UKRAINE became independent in 1991 when the USSR collapsed, so has made its own way for the past 25 years. In our World Audit’s 2016 report it ranks (out of 150 nations) 69th in the world for its overall Democracy, to which its Press Freedom rank contributed its 85th position and critically Corruption at 114th. It is geographically European but by these criteria is far behind any comparable European nation. Whilst its people fit quite comfortably into the European pattern, its rulers do not. It seems that ‘independence’ to the ruling classes (those with influence and/or money), meant that the bribes that used to be paid within Ukraine, back in the Soviet days, the bulk of which had then to be forwarded to Moscow, could now remain in their entirety, in Kiev. Over and again there have been changes in leadership, individuals many of whom were already rich, but were probably richer on leaving office. Sadly, even those who tried have failed to reform, or meaningfully impact the concept of public service integrity.

Culturally western Ukraine is inclined to Europe. It is after all an ancient European state under other names. At one point some six centuries ago combined with Poland and Lithuania, it formed the largest state that Europe has ever seen, stretching coast to coast, the Baltic to the Black Sea. Its ruination was being a member of the Russian Empire where it had a particularly bad time in the 20th Century at the hands of Moscow, under the USSR’s new communist masters, implanting communist theory by force, into Ukraine’s agriculture, resulting in mass starvation. Then it, and neighbouring Belarus, bore the brunt of the enormous land battles between the USSR and the Wehrmacht in the opening and closing stages of WWII.

It is unlike several other European former Soviet states, Estonia, Lithuania, Latvia, all of which made a determined effort to shake off the Russian bear. Ukraine in the east particularly, is Russian speaking and understandably Russia inclined, with Moscow’s full encouragement; but with Washington tugging in the other direction. Unfortunately for Ukraine and Europe, the struggle from the US side was and is led by neo-con officials in the State Department, to whom Ukraine is a pawn in a global ‘Great Game.’ The Russians under Putin, have of course relentlessly pursued the Russian interest, which burst out as we all know, in an ugly unfinished civil war, fought out in the eastern provinces. The upshot is very close to being a simmering Great Power proxy war.

There are obvious solutions which we suggested years ago, that the so-called ‘independent Republics’ of Luhansk and Donetsk in contention, should be given a referendum conducted by OSCE or another international agency, asking if they wished to be a part of the Russian Federation, or of the State of Ukraine. It seemed obvious to us that the old Soviet Russia-Ukraine boundaries were purely administrative, never negotiated; and also from Kiev’s point of view, that remaining in Ukraine, if what they really wished was to be in Russia, means that this region would never be an asset to Kiev, but always a liability.

In this September issue we carry the story forward (from our May edition) “Ukraine: US’ & Russia’s Corrupt Target State.”

SYRIA is still permanently in the world news as it has been for five years. It has been covered by us for longer than that period, and it’s story becomes even more complicated. Russia is now a full-on player and with domestic Islamicist problems within its own vast territories, has every reason to seek to close down ISIS, apart from supporting the Assad government and remaining a ‘player’ in world politics. Turkey after all these years, has stirred itself by sending military across the Syrian frontier, not against Syrian troops fortunately, but pre-emptively against its enemy of choice, the Kurds. After many suspected that Turkey had long been a not so secret backer of the Islamic State, on account of its open borders to their people and trade, particularly contraband oil from Syrian and even Iraqi oil-wells, that financed the Caliphate. Turkey may or may not react militarily against ISIS where they have thus far seriously dragged their heels. That remains an open question. But if they were complicit, Erdogan has been poorly recompensed with IS terrorist explosions in Istanbul, Ankara and elsewhere.

The middle-eastern chequer board is as complex as ever with Iran more fully involved, Russia with limited objectives, one of which is to have a seat at the table that finally decides what post-war Syria might look like. Our September contribution, “Russia Outflanks the US in Syria with help from Iran” describes ephemeral geopolitical waves, as of recent events in the region, (stories of Israeli –Saudi cooperation, moving on from the theoretical as well as China's involvement in Syria).

Finally, this issue includes “Democracy is Not Doing Well”! - data which tells that Free Speech, Media Freedom, that fundamental and essential component of democracy, is in steady decline around the World, as measured over recent years in the 2016 report of Freedom House (the World’s oldest NGO). It’s a serious matter when such a key building block of ‘the better world’ we strive for, or at least should do, to bequeath to our descendants is proven over several years to be failing.

Will it be up to them to do a better job, or is mankind simply incapable of sufficiently recognising and promoting unselfishness, over short term materialism?