Yeah, it's a shithole because you guys refuse to cooperate with your fellow Eastern Slavs. And Ukraine is an even bigger shithole! At least Russia's GDP is bigger than in 1989. Ukraine's GDP is only 70% of Soviet levels. More people owned cars in Ukraine in 1989 than in 2018. That's pathetic! You are a failed state. Ukraine's population will fall to 26.4 Million by the end of the century if current trends don't reverse. Prostitution and AIDS are rampant. And yes, Russia is also in a similarly shitty situation, though not quite as bad. Let's just keep it real. If Russia, Belarus, and Ukraine united, it would be much stronger. Think about it. As of now, you are divided into 3 shitty countries. I'm not even Russian, I'm Moldovan. But I have respect for my fellow Eastern European and Orthodox country. It would be sweet if we could have an Eastern European superpower to defend our culture and values on the global stage. Otherwise you get divided and conquered by the LGBT Feminist West and 3rd world migrants. Do you want your daughter to have children with a black man and your son to be gay? Understand that unity = strength. The larger the country, the bigger the population, the bigger the market, the bigger your economic and cultural potential will be, and the stronger the nation is. It doesn't make sense not to be united. Ukraine has way more in common with Russia than with the Western countries who aren't even Slavic.