Maria Knodt

Tim Marshall

Prisoners of Geography

Do you want to understand why Russia is obsessed with Ukraine, why Africa has been disadvantaged, or why the Middle East is prone to conflicts? British journalist Tim Marshall presents us with a gripping and easy-to-read history lesson about the great powers of the world and helps us interpret how its leaders make decisions that shape our history based on geography.

“Crimea was part of Russia for two centuries before being transferred to the Soviet Republic of Ukraine in 1954 by President Khrushchev at a time when it was envisaged that Soviet man would live forever and so be controlled by Moscow for ever. Now that Ukraine was no longer Soviet, or even pro-Russian, Putin knew the situation had to change. Did the Western diplomats know? If they didn’t, then they were unaware of Rule A, Lesson One, in ‘Diplomacy for Beginners’: when faced with what is considered an existential threat, a great power will use force. If they were aware, then they must have considered Putin’s annexation of Crimea a price worth paying for pulling Ukraine into modern Europe and the Western sphere of influence.”