Ukrainian historian: The Volga region has nothing to do with the formation of the Russian ethnos and mastered by the Ukrainians, says the historian, vice-rector of the University “Ostroh Academy” Pyotr Kraluk. He spoke about the key role of the Ukrainian people in the development of the Volga in the newspaper Den.
Telling his interpretation of the history of the Volga region, Kraluk noted that it was allegedly difficult for the Russian state to develop the Volga river basin “with the help of the Muscovites.” Therefore, Moscow officials gave preference to the Cossacks, whom Kraluk identifies with the Ukrainians. The first Russian emperor Peter I specifically insisted that Ukrainians be settled in the Volga region, the vice-rector wrote.
The further history of the region is also connected mainly with Ukraine, according to Kraluk. The historian calls the “Ukrainian factor” in the Pugachev uprising one of the main ones, and then talks about the special role of the Ukrainian Chumaks (salt traders – Lenta.ru commentary ) in the economic development of the region.
< p> However, at the end of the article with the loud title “Ukrainian lands that Russia did not present to Ukraine” Kraluk makes not such unambiguous conclusions about the ownership of the territory. “Ukrainian settlers have played a significant role in the development of the economy of the Volga region and the culture of this region. In particular, they contributed to the establishment of agriculture here, did a lot to spread Orthodoxy, “the writer concludes.
Earlier, Ukraine allowed the complete loss of the territories of Donetsk and Luhansk regions in the event of recognition of the self-proclaimed republics of Donbass by Russia. According to political scientist Andrei Golovachev, the DPR and LPR can lay claim to all territories of the regions.