The Ukraine ceasefire agreement struck in Minsk will come as a relief to the increasingly desperate residents who live along the frontlines in the Ukrainian Donbas.

Ten years ago, it was received wisdom in Western academic, business, and policy circles that Ukraine was an archetypal “captured state”—a state owned and run almost entirely by a small, insecure, and fabulously rich elite.

Kyiv is fighting to regain control over the eastern region of Ukraine, with news of troop buildups and tense standoffs with protesters.