History doesn't wait long to repeat itself. In the first week of April, pro-Russian separatists seized government buildings in eastern Ukraine, barricaded themselves inside and appealed to Russia to protect them. They are following the script that last month ended in Russia's annexation of Crimea. Only this time, the stakes are much higher. Eastern Ukraine is several times larger, wealthier and better defended than Crimea. Moreover, Russia won't have the advantage of surprise. In late February, its occupation of Crimea exploited the chaotic power vacuum left by Ukraine's revolution. Now the new government in Kiev is ready for a fight. Thousands of troops have been moved to guard its eastern borders, and police have arrested scores of separatists in what they have termed a counterterrorism operation.
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