"Ukraine: The Tug-of-war between Russia and the West", an Insightful Summary

 "Ukraine: The Tug-of-war between Russia and the West" is a short nonfiction book (around 120 pages) by Janvier T. Chando (also listed as Janvier Chouteu-Chando or Janvier T. Chando), an independent author known for works on geopolitics, African history, and related topics. It is available in Kindle, paperback, and audiobook formats (including a Japanese, French, German, Polish, Dutch, Portuguese, Spanish, Italian, Swedish, Chinese, and Ukrainian edition variants).

The book examines the Ukraine conflict (primarily focusing on events from around 2013–2014 onward, including the Euromaidan protests, the ousting of President Yanukovych, Russia's annexation of Crimea, and the war in Donbas) as a prolonged geopolitical struggle rather than a sudden event. It describes the war as something "hardly anyone saw coming back in 2010," yet already nearly a decade old by the time of writing, and famously dubbed by some as “The Most Stupid War in the World.”Key themes and arguments from the book's description and available excerpts include:

• Ukraine as an evenly divided society, caught in internal and external brinkmanship.
• The West (particularly Western governments and institutions) actively seeking to pull Ukraine into its orbit (e.g., through EU association and NATO aspirations), which the author portrays as provocative.
• Russia viewing Ukraine's potential Western alignment as an existential security threat, fearing the loss of a buffer zone and influence.
• Mutual accusations of blame: While most Western governments point to Russia as the instigator (especially regarding Crimea and Donbas as "invasions"), the book highlights divided public opinion in Western countries and suggests the conflict's origins involve actions and broken deals by multiple parties.
• Specific references to the West allegedly reneging on a brokered deal between Yanukovych and opposition leaders that could have enabled a smoother power transition during the 2013–2014 crisis.
• A broader view of the world watching "helplessly" as Ukraine is "torn apart at the seams."

The perspective leans toward critiquing Western narratives and policies as contributing factors (e.g., hypocrisy or overreach), while acknowledging Russia's security concerns, rather than a strictly pro-Russian or anti-Western polemic. It frames the situation as a classic great-power tug-of-war over influence in a strategically located borderland country.
Note that the book is relatively obscure, with limited mainstream reviews or high ratings (some editions show very few or no user ratings on platforms like Goodreads). For deeper historical context on the Russia–Ukraine–West dynamic, more widely recognized works include Serhii Plokhy's The Gates of Europe: A History of Ukraine, or analyses from think tanks like the Council on Foreign Relations.

Ukraine: The Tug-of-war between Russia and the West