Independence
Due to the aggression from
Soviet Russia, on 22 January 1918, the Tsentralna Rada issued its
Fourth Universal (dated 22 January 1918), breaking ties with
Bolshevik Russia and
proclaiming a sovereign Ukrainian state.
[6] Less than a month later, on 9 February 1918, the Red Army seized Kyiv.
Besieged by the Bolsheviks and having lost much territory, the Rada was forced to seek foreign aid, and signed the
Treaty of Brest-Litovsk on 9 February 1918 to obtain military help from the
German and
Austro-Hungarian Empires. Germany helped the Ukrainian Army force the Bolsheviks out of Ukraine. On 20 February 1918 the council of the
Kuban People's Republic accepted the resolution for a federal union of Kuban with Ukraine as Bolshevik forces pushed towards
Yekaterinodar. It was agreed to forward the resolution for ratification to the Ukrainian government.
After the treaty of Brest-Litovsk,
Ukraine became a virtual protectorate of the German Empire which at that time seemed more favorable[
to whom?] than being overrun by the Soviet forces that were spreading
havoc in the country. Germany was anxious about losing the war and was trying to speed up the process of food extraction from Ukraine, so it decided to install its own administration in the person of
Generalfeldmarschall von Eichhorn who replaced the
Colonel General Alexander von Linsingen. On 6 April the commander of the Army group
Kijew issued an order in which he explained his intentions to execute the conditions of the treaty. That, of course, conflicted with the laws of the Ukrainian government, which annulled his order. By April 1918 the
German-
Austrian Operation Faustschlag offensive had completely removed the Bolsheviks from Ukraine.
[7][5][8][9][10] The German/Austro-Hungarian victories in Ukraine were due to the apathy of the locals and the inferior fighting skills of Bolsheviks troops compared to their Austro-Hungarian and German counterparts.
[10]
The Germans arrested and disbanded the Tsentralna Rada on 29 April 1918 to stop the social reforms that were taking place and restarted the process of food supply transfer to Germany and Austria-Hungary.
