What question did this study set out to answer?

To explore Ukraine's sovereignty amid the structural vulnerabilities highlighted by the Russia–Ukraine war.

July 1, 20260 citationsOpen Access

Geopolitics Beyond Identity: Ukraine, Structural Exposure, and the Great-Power Trap

Key Points

To explore Ukraine's sovereignty amid the structural vulnerabilities highlighted by the Russia–Ukraine war.
Developed a structural-digital interpretation of the conflict.
Introduced an IR3 vocabulary to analyze geopolitical dynamics and implications.
Critically assessed the alignment of legal sovereignty and structural protection.
Identified a misalignment between Ukraine's legal sovereignty and actual structural protection.
Demonstrated that Western support was ambiguous and insufficient in terms of enforceable protection.
Showed that Ukraine's geopolitical position contributes significantly to its vulnerabilities.

Abstract

This paper develops a structural-digital interpretation of the Russia–Ukraine war beyond identity-based explanations. It argues that Ukraine should be understood as a sovereign state under conditions of structural exposure: a situation in which legal sovereignty, moral legitimacy, alliance expectations, military dependence, geographic vulnerability, energy corridors, narrative infrastructures, and great-power incentives became misaligned. The article introduces an IR3 vocabulary including structural exposure, the guarantor gap, peripheral entrapment, proxy-sovereignty paradox, narrative-logistical warfare, attrition reversal, leadership volatility, and strategic prudence. It argues that Russia bears legal and moral responsibility for the invasion, while also showing how alliance ambiguity, Western encouragement without enforceable protection, and Ukraine’s frontier position created a dangerous gap between legal entitlement and structural protection. International Relations Russia-Ukraine War Structural Realism Security Studies

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