As Russia's Neighbors Split In View Of The Invasion Of Ukraine

JAKARTA - One of the fairways to assess the impact of the Russia-Ukraine conflict on world peace is to examine the attitudes of countries bordering Russia.

The countries bordering Russia are Ukraine, Belarus, Norway, Finland, Poland, Lithuania, Estonia, Latvia, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Mongolia, China, and North Korea.

Except for Belarus and North Korea, they did not support the Russian invasion which was carried out secretly and openly.

The indicator can be seen from the resolution of the United Nations General Assembly on March 2, 2022, when 141 of 193 countries supported a resolution condemning the Russian invasion of Ukraine and calling for an end to the invasion.

The majority of Russia's neighbors support this resolution. They are Norway, Poland, Lithuania, Estonia, and Latvia which are all NATO members, neutral Finland, Georgia, and Azerbaijan in the southern Caucasus, and Ukraine itself.

The rest, namely Kazakhstan, Mongolia, and China, chose quietly not to support it by abstention.

Also abstained from Russia's ally in the South Caucasus, Armenia. Then Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan, while Uzbekistan supported the UN resolution. These four countries do not border Russia but were once part of the Soviet Union.

This attitude of Armenia, China, Kazakhstan, and Mongolia can be called a diplomatic blow to Russia. These countries implicitly disapprove of Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Kazakhstan for example. The country, which 72 percent of the population is Muslim, has a 7,644 km border with Russia, or the longest compared to other Russian neighbors.

Like Ukraine, Kazakhstan also has a significant ethnic Russian minority; 19 percent of the total 19 million population.

If in Ukraine, ethnic Russians inhabit its eastern regions, then in Kazakhstan, ethnic Russians are concentrated in the north.

Kazakhstan is closely watching the war in Ukraine. Many people feel that Russia could one day use the excuse of the Russian ethnic minorities to go as far in Kazakhstan as happened in Ukraine.

Kazakhstan is also often bullied by chauvinistic Russian leaders who marginalize the country's existence, such as Russian President Vladimir Putin who considers Ukraine non-existent.

Kazakhs will not forget the events of August 29, 2014, when Putin declared his country created by Nursultan Nazarbayev, the former leader of Kazakhstan.

"Kazakh was never a state. He (Nazarbayev) created a state in a region where there was no state before," Putin said at the time, as reported by Antara.

Six years later on December 10, 2020, the Chairman of the Duma Science and Education Commission (DPR Russia), Vyacheslav Nikonov, declared that most of Kazakhstan's territory was a gift from Russia and the Soviet Union.

Nikonov also stated "Northern Kazakhstan was once uninhabited. There were Kazakhs but it was far to the south." Nikonov's remarks angered Kazakhstan.