It’s a false dichotomy only if you indeed believe that Russia has “created” Ukraine and that Ukrainians are not a real nation. Russia has as much right to claim Ukraine as Ukraine - Russia. None.
There are some people, including some modern Ukrainians, who claim that Ukraine is a continuation state of people who had always lived in that area and have founded Kiev (I assume that it wat this 'ancient Ukraine' you were referring to here [0]). In that case, yes, 'Ukraine' was 'harassed' by itself, as Russia is nothing else, but a state created by this 'ancient Ukraine'.
If you hold another opinion - that Ukrainians are mixed descendants of people who came to live in this area in ~15 century after it was devastated by Mongol invasions and later steppe nomads plundering in 13..14 centuries, then no, Russia could not have harassed it in 'ancient' times.
I beg to differ. Ukraine was a divided country born in 1991 with two very different parts - east and west who didn't quite get along since then. But thanks to Putin's aggression, after 2014, and especially now, it is a one nation firmly united and resolved to not be a part of Russia. So Ukraine is a very real nation now, created paradoxically, by none other then Putin. This guy is a great reconciliator: he healed the east-west divide in the Ukraine, expanded NATO, and even united all of the EU, Great Britain, Switzerland and other nations.
Andrew_nenakhov|3 years ago
If you hold another opinion - that Ukrainians are mixed descendants of people who came to live in this area in ~15 century after it was devastated by Mongol invasions and later steppe nomads plundering in 13..14 centuries, then no, Russia could not have harassed it in 'ancient' times.
[0]: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=33948877
russianman|3 years ago
Andrew_nenakhov|3 years ago
int_19h|3 years ago