19: Oligarchies in Russia and Ukraine
The Making of Modern Ukraine
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Paul Manafort and Maidan
When the Chernobyl nuclear reactor blew up in 1986, this made it seem like Gorbachev's reforms were meaningless. There was a very brief interval before the Soviet Union came to an end for Ukraine to get its politics in order. After the coup, he has a referendum on Ukraine in independence. More than 90%. This is 1991. And they also have presidential elections, and Krajuk turns out to be president. The communists are able to ride this wave and re-establish themselves in positions of authority inside Ukraine.
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