Long time lurker first time poster here. I think this is an important issue that has been avoided by the Western media and so I have decided to provide some context. The National Post article does a very poor job of providing real context for this issue. What it basically boils down to is oppression against Ukrainians and Ukraine. For more than 300 years what is present day Ukraine was under Russian influence. Over this period the various Russian governments, tsars, and elites did their utmost to 1) exploit Ukrainian land 2) Utilize the people for their own nefarious purposes 3) Destroy Ukrainian culture and 4) When the above did not go as planned, commit genocide. I will address these four main issues sequentially. 1) For centuries Russian administrations in their various forms have viewed Ukraine as Russian territory and have seen it as their right to exert political, economic, and cultural influence on these lands. This view, although grossly misguided, is still quite pervasive today. Some arguments utilized are that Ukraine is not a real country and that Ukrainians are not a real ethnic group http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1900838,00.html 2) Ukrainians were seen as “little” Russians who were there simply to propagate the “greatness” of Mother Russia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Little_Russia#From_Little_Russia_to_Ukraine 3) Systematic attempts were made to eliminate the Ukrainian language and culture through repressive political policies, along with widespread Russification, and when those failed… http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ems_Ukaz 4) Outright genocide was committed to limit Ukrainian independence and destroy any semblance of ethnicity http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holodomor

With regard to your original inquiry regarding context please keep the following in mind. To Ukrainians (i.e. people who speak Ukrainian, are descendants of Ukrainian inhabitants, and follow Ukrainian traditions) this is not about limiting Russian or being in any way, shape or form against Russians or Russia. This is about putting an end to centuries of oppression. Imagine, for a moment, how the English would feel if German policies were responsible for the death of millions of English people followed by the settlement of German natives on English land with demands for wide spread use of the German language in England. This should give you some sense of context.

I’m very happy to see that people are interested in what is going on in Ukraine. Most people assume Ukrainians = Russians and don’t give matters like this a second thought.