Russia’s Bid to Win a Firmer Foothold in Ukraine Is Falling Flat

Anti-government protesters in Maidan, Kiev, in 2014.Photographer: Brendan Hoffman/Getty Images
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Russian efforts to boost influence over Ukraine at its neighbor’s election this month are making little headway.

Ties between the one-time allies remain at a nadir after protesters in Kiev unseated the country’s Kremlin-backed leader in 2014 and Vladimir Putin annexed Crimea before fomenting a war in which he still denies involvement. That’s left Ukraine focused on Western integration, and Russia still keen to derail it.