With the fall of the Soviet Union, Ukraine attained independence 30 years ago. The western part of Ukraine favored integration with Western Europe, whereas the eastern part favored closer connections with Russia.
However, the Ukrainian administration has been moving closer to the West. It has said publicly that it intends to apply for European Union membership in 2024, as well as have ambitions to join NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization - a group of 30 countries including the US, UK, France, and Germany). Putin, on the other hand, sees Ukraine as a territory rather than a sovereign state within Russia's "Sphere of influence." He's also using Ukraine as leverage for Western powers to get sanctions against Russia lifted. Another important factor is that a member country will be eligible for collective support in the event of external war. This is why Russia opposes the idea of Ukraine joining NATO as it believes that it will try to reclaim Crimea through armed means. (In 2014, Russia invaded and annexed Crimea from Ukraine) As a result, Russia is demanding that NATO forces withdraw from eastern Europe and never advance into Ukraine. These demands of Russia haven’t been met and this has led to the crisis between the two nations.
More than two-thirds of Russia's military combat capability has been placed within striking distance of Ukraine's borders. Apart from the United States, major nations such as Germany and France have been attempting to reduce tensions by persuading Russian President Vladimir Putin to withdraw his forces from Ukraine's borders, but to no effect.
