Ukraine declared independence in 1991 — but freedom didn’t come with a manual. In this episode, Dad takes you through the turbulent first years of sovereignty: a president who once worked for Moscow, inheriting 4,000 nuclear weapons, a collapsing economy, hyperinflation so bad people bartered chickens for shoes, and the rise of oligarchs who shaped politics for decades. Add in battles with Russia over the Black Sea Fleet and Crimea, and Ukraine’s search for identity was anything but smooth.

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