Waves of Globalization, Decolonization and Geopolitical Subjectivity

Abstract

The authors consider the issues of geopolitical subjectivity of Ukraine in the context of globalization processes, starting from the end of the 18th century. The article proves that each significant stage of globalization (the authors use the conceptual metaphor "wave of globalization"), among others, results in anti-colonial revolutions, the emergence of new states, and the independence of countries conquered by empires. Far not every anti-colonial revolution is connected with the formation and establishment of a new geopolitical subject, however, each testifies to a certain national maturity and subjectivity of the activist of such a revolution. This all applied in the past and applies to Ukraine now.Globalization was not and is not a linear process. It sees "ebbs and flows", sometimes the destruction of the achieved gains and advantages of the global economic and political systems. At the initial stages of globalization, despite the problems caused primarily by Russian imperial rule, Ukrainian society underwent noticeable modernization, but found itself in a situation of "delayed nation-building". Various, sometimes diametrically opposed, globalization projects compete with each other and influence those countries that have not yet acquired political subjectivity on the world stage. According to the authors, during the 20th and 21st centuries, the main plot of world development was the constant struggle between more or less democratic and currently totalitarian globalization projects, which had Ukraine as one of their arenas. The emergence of totalitarian states and corresponding global projects coincided in time with the Ukrainian revolution that began in 1917 and had a significant impact on its course, results, and subsequent events. The authors insist that already at that time, Ukraine had already become an important geopolitical factor, but not yet a subject, although certain Ukrainian forces were already internationally significant figures. Ukraine has become a full-fledged geopolitical subject under the current circumstances, having managed to effectively resist Russian aggression.