JRL NEWSWATCH: “The Revolution That Wasn’t: Disillusioned Ukrainians Head to Polls” – Wall Street Journal/ Georgi Kantchev
“Frustrated with graft, their inability to join NATO and the EU and a conflict with Russia, voters make a politically inexperienced comedian their top candidate”
“Five years ago, Ukrainians staged a revolution that sought to throw off a Russia-backed government and sweep away a corrupt ruling class. Europe and the West would pull the country into their orbit, reviving a long-suffering economy, they hoped. … [R]evolutionary fervor has dissipated into widespread disillusionment. A war with Russian-backed fighters drags on, frustrating the country’s hopes for swift membership in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and the European Union, and an economy dependent on Western aid is still beset by chronic corruption. … Sunday’s vote will be a referendum on which of several dozen candidates can pull Ukraine’s economy – Europe’s second-poorest after Moldova – out of the dumps, snuff out graft and stand up to Russia’s efforts to return the country to its sphere of influence. The yearning for change is such that a comedian with no political experience is now leading the polls, besting a sitting president and a former prime minister. For Washington and other Western capitals, which have invested billions of aid dollars and significant political resources, Ukraine is the front line in their deteriorating relations with Moscow. …”