The consequences of Ukraine's election.
While the foe of the Orange Revolution Viktor Yanukoyvch won the first round of Ukrainian elections, analysts don't see him prevailing in the Feb. 7 runoff with Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko. Either way, it seems that Ukraine is going to be reorienting itself geopolitically:
Despite sharp differences and personal animosity, Tymoshenko and Yanukovych share a similar view of Ukraine's relations with Russia, its giant neighbor to the east, by far Ukraine's biggest trading partner and the region's dominant military power.In the future, NATO membership is out. There will be no more Kremlin-bashing in Kiev, and relations with Georgia will not be nearly as close as they were under Orange President Viktor Yushchenko, who was trounced in Sunday's ballot, getting just 5.5 percent of the vote.
Five years ago many Orange protesters dreamed of breaking Ukraine's historic dependence on Moscow and becoming part of Western Europe.
But they've had a rude awakening, in the form of a battle with Russia over energy prices, the 2008 Russia-Georgia war and one of the worst recessions in Europe.
All seemed to demonstrate that like it or not, Ukraine couldn't get along without good relations with Moscow, its historic ally.
None of this is necessarily bad news for the U.S., provided we're willing to accede to Ukraine's wishes and table the NATO talk.
(AP Photos)
