Chess of war
Let us look at the main actors in the war unfolding in Ukraine. Here we can refer to the 'geopolitical chessboard' metaphor introduced by Zbigniew Brzezinski. Obviously, the territory of Ukraine, and to some extent Russia, is a 'chessboard' on which the global geopolitical confrontation is taking place. At the same time, Kiev itself, as everyone has long understood, has no independence or subjectivity: it is simply a tool that the main actors, primarily those playing against Russia, move at their discretion. Like any metaphor, the 'geopolitical chess' scheme we propose certainly has weaknesses and limitations, but if it helps to shed light on what is happening, this alone justifies its existence.