The Making of Modern Ukraine: Human Society in Historiographic Discourse. Resolving “Bessarabia issue” following the outcomes of the First World War: historiographic review

Modern period of the national state-building process probably more than in all the previous years of modern Ukrainian independence, require the society to be more attentive to the learning and understanding the events from the past. Moreover, people need this knowledge not only as background information but also for understanding their essence, taking into consideration their forerunner’s experience and generating of the model of the modern development of Ukrainian state. Since even now the catchphrase, “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it” is more than neverrelevant and and timely for modern Ukrainian nation”

«...Coming to common peace together with our allies»: Romania’s foreign policy balancing during World War I

The article covers the course of negotiations between the plenipotentiaries of Romania and the leading states of the Entente and the Quadruple Alliance during the First World War. Facing the dilemma of determining its own foreign policy orientation – by joining one of the mentioned military-political blocs, the Romanian government was hesitating for a long time to come to a final decision. At the same time, largely due to this balancing process, official Bucharest managed to preserve its sovereign right to work out and make the most important decisions, while consistent- ly defending Romania's national interests. By taking the side of the Entente and receiving com- prehensive military assistance from Russia, Romania at the same time faced enormous military and political problems due to military superiority of the allied Austrian and German forces at the Balkan theater of hostilities. Their occupation of much of Romania forced official Bucharest to seek an alternative, making it sign a separate agreement with the Central Block states. At the same time, its ratification was being delayed in every possible way, which enabled Romania to return to the camp of war winners at the right time. At the same time, official Bucharest made the most of the decline and liquidation of imperial institutions in Russia and Austria-Hungary at the final stage of the First World War, incorporating vast frontier territories into the Kingdom. Tak- ing advantage of the revolutionary events in Russia, the Romanian government succeeded, in par- ticular, in resolving the “Bessarabian problem” in its favor. In addition, Romania included Transyl- vania, Bukovina and part of Banat. An important foreign policy achievement of Romanian diplo- macy was signing of the 1918 Bucharest Peace Treaty, as well as its participation in the Paris Peace Conference