ПОГЛЯДИ АМЕРИКАНСЬКОГО ПОЛІТИКУМУ НА РОСІЙСЬКО-УКРАЇНСЬКІ ВІДНОСИНИ НАПРИКІНЦІ 2021 – 23.02.2022

Abstract

Background. United States as a global superpower and one of the world’s most developed centers of economy, technology and culture plays the key role on the international stage. Its influence on the global politics in the face of modern crisis makes it very important to understand American political elite’s plans and actions to have a better picture of the Washington’s stance on the current world development. That’s why the topicality of this article is that it examines the very rhetoric of the American political elites, especially Democratic and Republican parties, including their radical (left- and right-wing) groups as well as their own reaction and actions in the face of a global crisis of such kind – a threat of a full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine during late 2021 – early 2022. Understanding of those different political view plays a substantial role in any analysis of US actions on the world stage before and after the Russian 2022 aggression. The aim of the article is to analyze the American politicians’ views on the Russia-Ukraine relations at the end of 2021 – February 23,.2022. Methods. The authors use a method of synthesis as a general scientific method to create a broad picture of the American politicians’ views on the researched subject as a whole, using particular political groups and individual politicians’ stance on the Russian threat to Ukraine during the described period. Other methods (special historical ones) are also used, including historical-genetic method to trace the evolution of the aforementioned views under internal and external challenges. Another method – comparative one – helps us compare the difference in understanding of a Russian threat between different US political groups (especially the radical ones - Progressive Caucus and Freedom Caucus). Results. This article clarifies the positions and stance as well as their evolution of the prominent US parties (Democratic and Republican), the President and ex-politicians on the subject of the Russian military threat to Ukraine in the researched period. Conclusion. Despite the originally weak and diplomatic stance of the US political spectrum regarding the Russian potential invasion plans, attempts of peaceful resolution of the situation have failed, and so Washington started to support Ukraine militarily even before 23.02.2022, despite the radical politicians’ reluctance to do so.