In my view, which is informed by conversations with ex-patriots from Russia and the former Soviet Bloc, the conflict between Ukraine and Russia has not changed anything. What I mean by this is that power relations in the Soviet empire had been defined by a given community's relationship to the Kremlin.  This is true of the different subnational polities and ethnic groups within Russia proper (e.g., Ossetia, Chechnya) as well as the former satellite states (e.g., Ukraine) with the exception of the Baltic states. If there is anything remarkable it is that this relationship has endured despite the transition to capitalism. Here's an interesting follow up question: are states and empires more resilient than economic systems?

If we subscribe to the adage - those who refuse to learn from history are condemned to repeat it - then we have a lot to learn from Russo-Ukranian episodes of the past few months. Every single major man-made calamity of our history has had political exploitation of race/language/color at its heart. Let us start  from World War I onwards (for at least some of us or our fathers/grandpas were part of the world then; and come down to Israeli-Palestinian; Indo-Pak; Rwanda-Sudan-Congo-Sierra Leone; Yugoslavia; ...the list is exhaustive but the story is the same. Take America's civil war or Apartheid South Africa....the story is same again.

Ethincity/race/language - these actually matter nothing. Haven't we had foreigners living amongst us for millennia without a shade of trouble and in good faith and amity? But geopolitical considerations and "national interests" can alienate such populations over night and bring about violence and instability. We do not know whether the political masters who whip up these sentiments will gain or not; but we do know that the hapless common man will always be the looser. All we have to do is look at the thousands who flee the violent zones leaving their home and hearth. Neither their language/race/color id going to get them the only thing that they really need - PEACE.

We humans actually do not believe in learning, particularly from history. That is why we are condemned to repeat it.

I agree with Srinivan, we have to learn lot from history. Wars and terrorism are not solution to these problems.  Killing of civilians is not the nature of civilized-society, nor the religious-way.