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Ukraine's 2019 campaign began under Russian sanctions
Summary
A retrospective on the political situation in Ukraine at the turn of 2019, after martial law ended and Russia widened its trade restrictions.
What did Ukraine's political landscape look like on 1 January 2019? It was a country that had just entered a presidential election campaign, had only recently lifted martial law, and faced a new round of Russian trade restrictions.
According to reports, the presidential pre-election campaign in Ukraine began on 31 December 2018.
Martial law lifted
On 26 December 2018, martial law in Ukraine ended, a month after an attack on three Ukrainian Navy vessels near the Kerch Strait. The incident took place on 25 November 2018, when the Russian Federal Security Service coast guard fired upon and captured the three vessels. They had been trying to pass from the Black Sea into the Sea of Azov on their way to the port of Mariupol. It was the first time Russian forces had openly engaged Ukrainian forces during the Russo-Ukrainian War.
Russia widens sanctions
On 29 December 2018, the Russian government expanded its sanctions against Ukraine. It banned imports from Ukraine of industrial goods, agricultural products and foodstuffs on an approved list.
The three developments came within a few days of one another: the end of martial law on 26 December, the new Russian restrictions on 29 December and the start of the presidential campaign on 31 December. Together they defined the position in which Ukraine entered 2019.
