Indeed, Ukraine never was a Russian colony (whatever proponents of the Ukrainian nationalism may preach), but a heartland of the Empire in pair of its three incarnations; Khrushchev and Brezhnev, the Soviet rulers at the times of peak USSR, were Ukrainians by ethnicity. Meanwhile as soon as Russian (Gorbachev) reached the General Secretary post for the first time in 60+ years, USSR had begun to crumble ever faster.