An Unknown Land? The Making of a European History of Ukraine in German, British, and Polish Print Media after 24 February 2022

Abstract

Following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine on 24 February, the perception of Ukraine in Western Europe changed dramatically. With increased media coverage and public awareness, the previously unknown country was widely perceived as European, and it was historical references and arguments with history that underpinned this change. This article analyses how Western journalists, historians, and politicians related Ukraine to Europe and presented its European history by studying newspaper coverage in Germany, Poland, and the United Kingdom between 1 January 2022 and 1 March 2023. Shortly after the full-scale invasion, the war in Ukraine came to be seen as a return of history, with a geopolitical bloc confrontation between Russia and the West emerging once more. Furthermore, when presenting Ukrainian history from a European perspective, Western media outlets focused on specific events, such as mass violence in the twentieth century, often relating Ukraine to respective national histories. In both of these discursive nodes, Ukraine was depicted as a setting for European history without contributing to Europe itself. In contrast, Ukraine’s recent twenty-first-century history revealed its ambition to adopt European values and join the European Union. Polish and German commentators, but also Ukrainian voices, viewed the Euromaidan protests particularly as an addition to the history of European integration. The article holds that after 24 February 2022, the Europeanization of Ukrainian history provided a way to make sense of unexpected events and legitimize Western support for Ukraine. However, it did not contribute to reflections on European or Ukrainian history.