Ulrich Schmid

This compelling collection of essays unveils various underlying layers of the Russo-Ukrainian War, casting it against a sweeping socio-historical backdrop. Far more than a military-political chronicle, this empirically rich volume—rooted in the contested terrain of history—delves into a tapestry of pressing themes: humanitarian ripples of neighboring alliances, fierce contests within the information arena, seismic shifts in social fabric, and intricate dimensions of identity transformation. The incisive analyses are often methodologically innovative, particularly in dissecting the functioning of occupation regimes within modern warfare and unearthing subtle yet striking historical parallels. It probes both the grand sweep of institutional forces and the intimate pulse of community life, offering a dual lens on the conflict’s far-reaching impact. Spanning the first decade of the Russo-Ukrainian War, the essays defy a simple division into its two main phases, instead weaving a narrative that traces the unbroken threads and evolving dynamics of the struggle. Born from conference dialogues, this book does not chase exhaustive completeness. Rather, it embraces the enigma of an unfolding war and its uncertain horizon. With thought-provoking insights and space for contemplation, it beckons readers into the heart of a complex, living history.

Russia’s illegal annexation of Crimea in 2014 and the ongoing war in eastern Ukraine have brought scholarly and public attention to Ukraine’s borders. Making Ukraine aims to investigate the various processes of negotiation, delineation, and contestation that have shaped the country’s borders throughout the past century.Essays by contributors from various historical fields consider how, when, and under what conditions the borders that historically define the country were agreed upon. A diverse set of national and transnational contexts are explored, with a primary focus on the critical period between 1917 and 1954. Chapters are organized around three main themes: the interstate treaties that brought about the new international order in Eastern Europe in the aftermath of the world wars, the formation of the internal boundaries between Ukraine and other Soviet republics, and the delineation of Ukraine’s borders with its western neighbours. Investigating the process of bordering Ukraine in the post-Soviet era, contributors also pay close attention to the competing visions of future relations between Ukraine and Russia.Through its broad geographic and thematic coverage, Making Ukraine illustrates that the dynamics of contemporary border formation cannot be fully understood through the lens of a sole state, frontier, or ideology and sheds light on the shared history of territory and state formation in Europe and the wider modern world.

Ukraine: Contested Nationhood in a European Context challenges the common view that Ukraine is a country split between a pro-European West and a pro-Russian East. The volume navigates the complicated cultural history of Ukraine and highlights the importance of regional traditions for an understanding of the current political situation. A key feature is the different politics of memory that prevail in each region, such as the Soviet past being presented as either a foreign occupation or a benign socialist project. The pluralistic culture of Ukraine (in terms of languages, national legacies and religions) forms a nation that faces both internal and external challenges. In order to address this fully, rather than following a merely chronological order, this book examines different interpretations of Ukrainian nationhood that have been especially influential, such as the Russian tradition, the Habsburg past and the Polish connections. Finally, the book analyses Ukraine’s political and economic options for the future. Can the desired integration into EU structures overcome the concentration of investment of power in the hands of a few oligarchs and a continuing widespread culture of corruption? Will proposals to join NATO, which garnered robust support among the populace in the aftermath of the Russian aggression, materialise under the current circumstances? Is the political culture in Ukraine sufficiently functional to guarantee democratic procedures and the rule of law?

Ukraine: Contested Nationhood in a European Context challenges the common view that Ukraine is a country split between a pro-European West and a pro-Russian East. The volume navigates the complicated cultural history of Ukraine and highlights the importance of regional traditions for an understanding of the current political situation. A key feature is the different politics of memory that prevail in each region, such as the Soviet past being presented as either a foreign occupation or a benign socialist project. The pluralistic culture of Ukraine (in terms of languages, national legacies and religions) forms a nation that faces both internal and external challenges. In order to address this fully, rather than following a merely chronological order, this book examines different interpretations of Ukrainian nationhood that have been especially influential, such as the Russian tradition, the Habsburg past and the Polish connections. Finally, the book analyses Ukraine’s political and economic options for the future. Can the desired integration into EU structures overcome the concentration of investment of power in the hands of a few oligarchs and a continuing widespread culture of corruption? Will proposals to join NATO, which garnered robust support among the populace in the aftermath of the Russian aggression, materialise under the current circumstances? Is the political culture in Ukraine sufficiently functional to guarantee democratic procedures and the rule of law?

In Osteuropa beschaftigen sich immer mehr Kinofilme und Fernsehserien mit historischen Themen. Dabei wird oft ein patriotisches Grundstimmung erzeugt, die emotional aufgeladen wird. Kinofilme und Fernsehserien werden in Russland, Polen und der Ukraine heute immer ofter im Dienst der Geschichtspolitik eingesetzt. Staatliche und private Akteure greifen kontroverse historische Themen auf und binden sie in melodramatische Szenarios ein. Dabei werden auch umstrittene historische Figuren neu gedeutet und als nationale Vorbilder prasentiert. Geschichte wird so in ein anschauliches und attraktives Spektakel eingebunden. Die historischen Filmhelden durchlaufen schwierige Biographien, die in ihrer emotionalen Aufladung an mediale Konsumgewohnheiten heutiger Zuschauer angeglichen werden.

Die "Multimedia"-Debatte steckt voller Visionen des sozialen und kulturellen Fortschritts. Medientechnische Innovationen, egal ob Buchdruck, Rundfunk oder (Kabel-)Fernsehen, waren immer ein Anlass fur derartige Hoffnungen. Doch im Ruckblick auf fruhere Medienprojekte lasst sich ebenso wie aus der Geschichte der etablierten Medien lernen, dass die ursprunglichen Nutzungskonzepte und -vorstellungen selten denen entsprachen, die sich langfristig durchsetzten. Was berechtigt also zu den gegenwartigen Erwartungen bei "Multimedia"? Und welche Voraussetzungen mussen erfullt sein, damit sich der Computer - wie vielfach behauptet - tatsachlich zu einem neuen "Massen- oder Leitmedium" entwickelt? Die Verfugbarkeit neuer Medientechniken, so die in diesem Band entwickelte These, ist zwar eine notwendige, aber keine hinreichende Bedingung. Im inhaltlich-kulturellen Sinn ist die Entstehung neuer Medien vielmehr ein lang andauernder Prozess der Organisationsentwicklung und Einbettung in den Nutzungsalltag.