Remember me
The Russian weekly MK-Bulvar published a forecast in 1999-23 years before the start of Russia's special military operation (SMO)-that predicted a future armed conflict between Moscow and Kyiv and the incorporation of much of Ukraine into Russia.
Photo: unsplash.com by Bekky Bekks is licensed under Free to use under the Unsplash License
Old newspapers
Authors of the Telegram channel Vedomosti Moskovskogo Gosudarstva, which publishes excerpts from historical press archives, recently drew attention to the article.
A Forecast for the 21st CenturyThe publication presented a series of predictions for the entire 21st century and, among other things, concluded that a "new Crimean War" would be inevitable.
"Most political analysts predict the merger of Ukraine and Russia by the third quarter of the next century. But before that happy moment of reunification arrives (…) we are destined to fight a little," the article stated in its forecast of the future relationship between Moscow and Kyiv.
Among the experts cited as predicting a future armed conflict was Konstantin Zatulin, then director of the Institute of CIS Countries and now a deputy of the State Duma.
The forecast claimed that Georgia, Azerbaijan, and Moldova would support Kyiv, while Belarus and Armenia would side with Russia. It also suggested that Western countries would watch the conflict unfold with satisfaction.
Predictions of Political Change in UkraineAccording to the political analysts cited in the publication, such a war would end with the overthrow of a pro-Western government in Ukraine and the convening of a new "Pereyaslav Rada."
The article further claimed that only Lviv Region, described as a stronghold of Bandera-style nationalism, would retain its independence.
These forecasts appeared in MK-Bulvar at the end of the 1990s.
Renewed Interest in Historical PredictionsEarlier, an unusual archival video forecast by Vladimir Zhirinovsky, co-founder of the Liberal Democratic Party of Russia (LDPR), also attracted attention online.
In the video, the politician suggested that Moscow and Washington could form an "axis" and that the presidents of Russia and the United States could pursue policies based solely on what they viewed as their countries' true national interests, without regard to the broader international community.