Are Russia and Ukraine neighboring countries?

Yes, there was a time in history when Ukraine belonged to the Russian Empire.

In 1654, the Ukrainian Cossack leader Khmelnytsky signed the "Pereyaslav Peace Treaty" with the Russian Tsar, and invited Tsarist Russia to rule East Ukraine. From then on, East Ukraine (the left bank of the Dnieper River) and Russia The empire officially merged, beginning the history of the alliance between Ukraine and Russia.

In the 19th century, most of Ukraine was annexed by the Russian Empire, and the rest was occupied by the Austro-Hungarian Empire. During the chaotic period of World War I and the Russian Revolution, it briefly became independent as the Ukrainian People's Republic. The Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic was established in 1917. It was merged into the Soviet Union in 1922 and became one of the Soviet Union's republics. In 1990, it adopted the Declaration of Sovereignty.

Regained independence on August 24, 1991.

Ukraine and Russia originally had the same origin as the East Slavs, and both developed from Kievan Rus. Later, due to their own internal conflicts and the Mongol invasion, as well as the rule of the Grand Duchy of Poland in Lithuania over the Ukrainian region, they gradually became The now independent Ukrainian nation began to form.

Eastern Ukraine naturally belonged to Tsarist Russia, while western Ukraine was annexed by Tsarist Empress Catherine II in 1764. During this period, the civil war in eastern and western Ukraine lasted until the end of the 17th century. Tsarist Russia has been taking various measures against Ukraine. The repressive policy of Peter the Great, who stationed troops in Ukraine to eliminate rebellions at any time and arrest those who tried to make the Cossacks independent, sowed the seeds of national hatred.