Example Two: The Conflict in Ukraine

So one of the most fascinating things about the ethnicity that exists in Ukraine is the fact that there is such a huge divide between them. There are are five ethnicities that exist within the country (Ukrainian, Russian, Romanian, Hungarian, and Bulgarian) but of these, the two are at constant odds with each other; Ukrainian and Russian. This conflict exists because after the first world war, Russia absorbed the Ukraine into the Soviet Union. When the Soviet Union collapsed Ukraine became independent. But there was one issue; a huge amount of the Russian people still lived in the Ukraine. Russian was even the second most dominant language in the country by a huge margin. So while many wished the country to be Ukraine, but those who were Russian wanted to be connected to Russia. This has created a large amount of conflict between the two ethnic groups. Below is an ethic map showing the dominant langues spoken in different regions of Ukraine.

   
 Source: www.washingtonpost.com

As for religion in Ukraine, the most popular religion in the country is Eastern Orthodox, a sect of Christianity. And while this is by far the most dominant religion in the area there are sections of Ukraine that practice Islam, Judaism, and even Buddhism. From what I was able to find, while there are religions with differing ideas, there really aren't any examples of religious conflict. Below is an image of an Orthodox church in Ukraine.
  
  Source: www.about-ukraine.net

Finally, while their isn't really any type of religious conflict recently there has been a lot of political turmoil. Back in 2013, Ukrainians wanted to have a stronger relationship with the European Union but the Ukrainian President, Viktor Yanukovych, refused so sign any sort of agreement because he wished to have strong relationship with Russia instead. This lead to almost a year long conflict with Ukrainians troops and Pro-Russian rebels, leading to the tragic deaths of over 400 people. The video link below gives a brief history of Ukraine and Russia from before World War One to the year 2014. And though the video only covers up to 2014 there is still conflict between the Ukrainian loyalists and Pro-Russian rebels. Please click the link.    

Understanding Ukraine: The Problems Today and Some Historical Context

 Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A2nklduvThs