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date: 30 June 2022

Abstract and Keywords

During much of Ukraine’s post-Soviet history, the radical right has remained on the political periphery, wielding little influence over national politics. However, from 2009 to 2014, Ukraine saw a radical right-wing party, Svoboda, enter parliament, and from 2014 to 2016 there was an increased social role played by the right-wing radical groups Pravyi Sektor and Azov. Thus, the political impact of the far right in Ukraine extends beyond electoral performance and to the activities of extra-parliamentary groups that are beginning to penetrate political life and state institutions. The radical right in Ukraine is intertwined, but not identical, with ethnic Ukrainian nationalism. The direction and development of the Ukrainian far right have thus been a result of both the historical legacy and cultural context of a nation that was ruled over by others for centuries and is home to competing ethnic nationalisms and geopolitical orientations.

Keywords: Ukraine, radical right, right-wing movement, radicalism, Svoboda, far right, extra-parliamentary groups, ethnic Ukrainian nationalism

Melanie Mierzejewski-Voznyak

Melanie Mierzejewski-Voznyak is an Associate Research Fellow at the Institute of International Relations, Prague. Her areas of expertise include party politics and democratization in Eastern Europe and the Caucasus. Her research has appeared in East European Politics and New Eastern Europe.

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