Russia’s Policy towards Donbas Since 2014: The Nation-Building Process and Its Ideology

Abstract

This study examines the ideology of the nation-building process in the so-called Donetsk and Luhansk People’s Republics. The key features of this process are uncovered through a discourse analysis of school textbooks published in the People’s Republics and in Transnistria, and of the ‘Russian Donbas’ ideology. This is compared to the history and interpretations of the concept of ‘Novorossiya’. This research demonstrates the difference between Donbas and other the post-Soviet contested states, and highlights the role of the Russian government and Russian radical right-wing intellectuals in the formation of the ‘Russian Donbas’ ideology. It concludes that, although Russia had a decisive influence on the development of the conflict in Donbas, Donbas also affected the ideological transformation of Putin’s Russia.