The war in Ukraine is the most import event in Europe since the collapse of the Soviet Union. The explicit goal of Russia’s invasion is to dismantle the US-dominated post- Cold War global order and resurrect the Kremlin’s control of Eurasia. The invasion brought mass murder back to Ukraine, crimes which are sadly not infrequent throughout Ukraine’s history. This book zooms in on the intersection of the most important geopolitical event in recent decades and the most odious type of violence. Russian mass murder of Ukrainian civilians is an important lens to understand not just the ongoing war but also Russia, Ukraine and the relations between them more generally.

This book demonstrates that Russian violence against Ukrainian civilians is a deliberate, large scale campaign of mass murder. The goal of this campaign is to wipe out Ukrainians as an identity group. Finkel’s key argument is that this violence is deeply rooted in the history of Ukrainian-Russian relations and is a direct continuation of the Kremlin’s playbook of dealing with domestic and foreign opposition.

The book presents this genocidal violence, how it unfolded and was experienced by its victims. The book explains its causes: Russia’s visions of domination and tools of violent subjugation, most of which were in the past employed in Ukraine and against Ukrainians and Ukraine’s internal cleavages that prevented the emergence of a strong, viable state and a unifying national identity. How and why a true civic national identity emerged in Ukraine after centuries of external domination and internal rifts and why did the Kremlin perceive this identity as an existential threat. Finally, the book explores the challenges of historical memory, accountability for crimes committed by Russia, and what will be required for reconciliation between future generations of Ukrainians and Russians.

Praise

‘A powerful indictment of Russia’s centuries-long obsession with eliminating the Ukrainian identity, language and people.’
Yaroslav Trofimov, Chief Foreign-Affairs Correspondent, The Wall Street Journal

‘An unprovoked invasion, a forced-adoption program, massacres of civilians, the upending of truth, a jagged ‘Z’ symbol deployed to signal loyalty to a repressive regime – the parallels between present and past in Russia’s war on Ukraine are breathtaking. A work of deep expertise and sober sensitivity, Intent to Destroy connects these threads and details the repeated waves of devastation that have resulted from Russia’s long-term obsession with eradicating Ukraine’s separate identity.’
Charles King

‘Eugene Finkel tells a story of violence, identity, and the final stages of empire in Europe – the story of Ukraine. Starting with attempts by Imperial Russia in the nineteenth century to destroy Ukrainian identity, Intent to Destroy stretches through Stalin’s genocidal famine in the 1930s, to Putin’s invasion today. However, as Finkel shows, Ukrainian identity, even in military or political defeat, survived until the collapse of the Soviet Union; since then, and especially since 2014, it has evolved into something powerful and enduring. This is a book that can help explain the most important war and geopolitical crisis in Europe today and which does so with clarity, learning and sensitivity. Anyone interested in understanding what is happening in Ukraine today should read it.’
Phillips Payson O’Brien, author of The Strategists

‘Eugene Finkel, who correctly called Russia’s war against Ukraine ‘genocidal,’ makes the case here with erudition and verve. Those who want Russian perspectives on the war will find the relevant ones here.’
Timothy Snyder, New York Times-bestselling author of On Tyranny

‘Vladimir Putin claims that the Russians and Ukrainians are one and the same people, but as Eugene Finkel convincingly argues in his new book, the relationship between the two nations has been anything but brotherly, with Russians doing their best to dominate and as of recent destroy Ukraine. A powerful antidote to those who claim that NATO is the main culprit responsible for the current war.’
Serhii Plokhy, the author of Chernobyl Roulette: War in the Nuclear Disaster Zone

‘Russia’s attack on Ukraine in 2022 surprised many of us. But it shouldn’t have. Eugene Finkel’s masterful account of centuries of Russian designs on Ukraine spells out why Moscow won’t leave Kyiv alone and what defenders of Ukraine should do about it. A must read account of the most important foreign policy question of our age.’
Ben Ansell, author of Why Politics Fail

‘Eugene Finkel’s Intent to Destroy spans several centuries, delving into some of the most heinous atrocities perpetrated by the Kremlin on Ukrainian lands. Despite the extensive scope, the text is rich in nuanced analysis, being equally valuable for scholars and accessible to readers unfamiliar with the region. What stands out most is Finkel’s approach: rather than striving for unattainable objectivity, he bravely acknowledges his deep investment in producing responsible scholarship that is guided by honesty.’
Olesya Khromeychuk, Director of the Ukrainian Institute London and author of The Death of a Soldier Told by His Sister

‘The ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine is the culmination of centuries of painful interactions involving a punctuated but progressive rise of Ukrainian consciousness and a concomitant rise of fear in Russia threatened by an independent Ukrainian nation. Finkel provides an accessible, nuanced and dynamically presented historical background to the conflict, highlighting Russia’s imperial drive and juxtaposing the historical places two nations find themselves in today.’
Gulnaz Sharafutdinova, director of Russia Institute, King’s College London

‘A masterpiece. This is a must-read to understand Russia’s mission to destroy Ukraine over hundreds of years – and the heroic resistance against it. Utterly essential if you want to know what’s at stake in the greatest war in Europe since WWII.’
Peter Pomerantsev, author of Nothing Is True and Everything Is Possible

‘This is a highly readable and yet, most rigorous account of how Russia has – for generations – tried to subjugate, repress, control and destroy the Ukrainian nation and the Ukrainian state. Finkel, a master of empirical detail and with immense comparative knowledge, makes plainly evident why what Ukrainians understand to be their core civic duty and identity is so frightening and despised by Russia, and tragically, why it must be in Russia’s view destroyed.’
Olga Onuch, co-author of The Zelensky Effect

“A book that does good service in deepening our understanding of what lies behind the headlines.”
Kirkus Reviews