Why did Putin invade Ukraine? It's not what you think.

[Hermit For Peace]

This article deeply delves into the reason why Putin invaded Ukraine. It's detailed, well researched, and factual. Has anyone wondered why Putin seemed to come out of nowhere and invade Ukraine for no reason? Did he want the land? Did he want to annihilate Ukraine's people? There are other media-driven reasons for why people think Putin invaded Ukraine.

But it wasn't Putin. Putin was acting in self-defense. It was the United States and its allies that precipitated Putin's actions. I quote the author's well researched conclusion below. I recommend reading the article. It's very well written and gives a historical backdrop of why what is happening in Ukraine is occurring. The author is John J. Mearsheimer, the R. Wendell Harrison Distinguished Service Professor of Political Science at the University of Chicago.

Simply put, the ongoing conflict in Ukraine is a colossal disaster, which as I noted at the start of my talk, will lead people all around the world to search for its causes. Those who believe in facts and logic will quickly discover that the United States and its allies are mainly responsible for this train wreck. The April 2008 decision to bring Ukraine and Georgia into NATO was destined to lead to conflict with Russia. The Bush administration was the principal architect of that fateful choice, but the Obama, Trump, and Biden administrations have doubled down on that policy at every turn and America’s allies have dutifully followed Washington’s lead. Even though Russian leaders made it perfectly clear that bringing Ukraine into NATO would be crossing “the brightest of red lines,” the United States refused to accommodate Russia’s deepest security concerns and instead moved relentlessly to make Ukraine a Western bulwark on Russia’s border. (Bold is my emphasis)

The tragic truth is that if the West had not pursued NATO expansion into Ukraine, it is unlikely there would be a war in Ukraine today and Crimea would still be part of Ukraine. In essence, Washington played the central role in leading Ukraine down the path to destruction. History will judge the United States and its allies harshly for their remarkably foolish policy on Ukraine. Thank you.

https://www.russiamatters.org/analysis/causes-and-consequences-ukraine-war

[GALeftist]

lol @ Mearsheimer

[BigSerg]

We all know that the prelude to the invasion of Ukraine started when Bill Clinton mocked Putin when he asked to join NATO in the 1990s, then with the totally blatant coup in 2014 and finally with Biden's Dementia.

[Hermit For Peace]

And for balance, here is a link to an article responding to the above author's claims. I haven't read this one but I bet it will answer questions people have regarding the above article.

https://www.russiamatters.org/analysis/whats-missing-mearsheimers-analysis-ukraine-war

[Hermit For Peace]

These are my attempts at trying to understand why Putin invaded Ukraine. From the beginning I suspected that it didn't happen in a vacuum, but the media portrays the US and its allies as being the good guys and Russia as being the bad guys and we all seem to go with that. I'm not buying it anymore. There is way more to the story than we are being fed.

[Horus]

It's very simple, bigger countries should stop bullying smaller countries, and when they do bully them they should be sanctioned to hell. The problem is that we were never punished properly for Iraq, and some of Ukraine's biggest cheerleaders were also Cheney and Rumsfeld's biggest cheerleaders. So it looks hypocritical when they call for various punishments against Russia since both groups are imperialists with no sense of rights and wrong, just "my side" and "their side."

[ꙮ]

Countries willingly choosing to join NATO does not justify Russia’s invasion and attempted conquest of Ukraine. A swing and a miss. Thanks for playing.

[President Johnson]

The reason Putin invaded Ukraine is his desire to prevent the spread of Western democracies in his presumed "sphere of influence" (which doesn't exist anymore, though he still has a cold war mindset). The Western and European model scares him to the bone because he's afraid that a successful Ukraine prompts an uprise in Russia once his own people see that Ukrainians are way better off with a free-market economy and the rule of law. The concern over NATO was always nonsense and it was always obvious. It's just Kremlin shills and other apologists who continue to live in denial. Putin almost certainly is more afraid of the EU than he is of NATO.

Furthermore, he justifies the war with an obscure obsession over history, in which he believes - what has factually been debunked by all serious academics - that Russia, Belarus and Ukraine belong together in a "Greater Russian Empire" or union state. Subsequently he doesn't respect their own sovereignty as he sees himself on a mission to restore said empire.

[John Dule]

Moronic post, as is standard for the OP.

[jojoju1998]

Macron said that Ukraine joining NATO was out of the question before the invasion began.


And even if it was about NATO, why would Putin launch a full scale invasion of a another country ?

If this was the US, OP would be the first one to condemn it, but somehow Russian imperialism is good.

[President Johnson]

Countries willingly choosing to join NATO does not justify Russia’s invasion and attempted conquest of Ukraine. A swing and a miss. Thanks for playing.

You nailed it.

What bothers me in particular here as well as with regard to other countries joining NATO is the false narrative that the "imperalist West", especially the US, forced others to join NATO to expand their own influence. It was neither Biden nor any of his predecessors - Democrat or Republican - who forced the Baltics, Sweden, Finland and Ukraine into the alliance. These countries asked for admission, through democratically elected governments. Left-wing, right-wing and centrist governments. And as demonstrated with the Ukraine invasion, these countries had good reasons for their decisions (aside from the fact that Eastern European countries lived under Soviet rule of decades; they were also occupied by Germany before, but unlike Russia, Germany has changed so so much none of neighbors has to be afraid anymore).

[BigSerg]

The reason Putin invaded Ukraine is his desire to prevent the spread of Western democracies in his presumed "sphere of influence" (which doesn't exist anymore, though he still has a cold war mindset). The Western and European model scares him to the bone because he's afraid that a successful Ukraine prompts an uprise in Russia once his own people see that Ukrainians are way better off with a free-market economy and the rule of law. The concern over NATO was always nonsense and it was always obvious. It's just Kremlin shills and other apologists who continue to live in denial. Putin almost certainly is more afraid of the EU than he is of NATO.

Furthermore, he justifies the war with an obscure obsession over history, in which he believes - what has factually been debunked by all serious academics - that Russia, Belarus and Ukraine belong together in a "Greater Russian Empire" or union state. Subsequently he doesn't respect their own sovereignty as he sees himself on a mission to restore said empire.

Challenge: mention these so-called "academics".

Difficulty: Impossible

[BigSerg]

Macron said that Ukraine joining NATO was out of the question before the invasion began.


And even if it was about NATO, why would Putin launch a full scale invasion of a another country ?

If this was the US, OP would be the first one to condemn it, but somehow Russian imperialism is good.

Are you serious, why believe a puppet like Macron when his own predecessor openly stated that the Minsk agreements were theater and that they never intended to carry them out? Give it some thought

[Snowstalker Mk. II]

Discussing NATO expansion as a war cause is a red herring for both sides. Putin is a Russian nationalist who wants Russia to territoriality expand into what he sees as its rightful territory for the benefit of Russian capitalists (who are already hard at work looting the Donbass), and sees the separation between Russia, Ukraine, and Belarus as an anachronism forced upon Russia by Lenin (who was, of course, a German/Anglo-Saxon foreign agent!) He has explicitly, repeatedly laid out his views on the subject.

[BigSerg]

Countries willingly choosing to join NATO does not justify Russia’s invasion and attempted conquest of Ukraine. A swing and a miss. Thanks for playing.

The invasion of Ukraine was fully justified since the 2014 coup, it remains justified and history will be on our side

[emailking]

I don't know why he invaded. I think he just wants to reform the Soviet Union. But maybe he invaded to knock the US down a peg. And maybe if NATO has not expanded he would not have invaded. Who knows. But whatever the reason he wanted to do it, the invasion is not justified and they have committed countless war crimes that have no excuse.

[Filuwaúrdjan]

It would be useful if people didn't post fascist propaganda directly to the forum.

[Hermit For Peace]

The reason Putin invaded Ukraine is his desire to prevent the spread of Western democracies in his presumed "sphere of influence" (which doesn't exist anymore, though he still has a cold war mindset). The Western and European model scares him to the bone because he's afraid that a successful Ukraine prompts an uprise in Russia once his own people see that Ukrainians are way better off with a free-market economy and the rule of law. The concern over NATO was always nonsense and it was always obvious. It's just Kremlin shills and other apologists who continue to live in denial. Putin almost certainly is more afraid of the EU than he is of NATO.

Furthermore, he justifies the war with an obscure obsession over history, in which he believes - what has factually been debunked by all serious academics - that Russia, Belarus and Ukraine belong together in a "Greater Russian Empire" or union state. Subsequently he doesn't respect their own sovereignty as he sees himself on a mission to restore said empire.

Do you have information to back this up? In the article I posted, the author took us through step by step events as they happened, and scoured for evidence into the reasoning behind the actions of all the players in the scenario. So I ask you, where did your information come from and do you have evidence to back it up?

[Snowstalker Mk. II]

Countries willingly choosing to join NATO does not justify Russia’s invasion and attempted conquest of Ukraine. A swing and a miss. Thanks for playing.

The invasion of Ukraine was fully justified since the 2014 coup, it remains justified and history will be on our side

Putin is a reactionary irridentist oligarch who launched the war by going on a deranged rant about Lenin creating Ukraine from thin air. He is not on "your side".

[ꙮ]

Countries willingly choosing to join NATO does not justify Russia’s invasion and attempted conquest of Ukraine. A swing and a miss. Thanks for playing.

The invasion of Ukraine was fully justified since the 2014 coup, it remains justified and history will be on our side

👍

[Farmlands]

What a surprise the user who's been saying all year that Zelensky's the one who should be tried as a war criminal, not Putin, is now blaming the West for Russia's atrocities, just like it's an abused victim's fault for getting hit for speaking out of turn. It's a good new username however, it fits quite well.

[Hermit For Peace]

Countries willingly choosing to join NATO does not justify Russia’s invasion and attempted conquest of Ukraine. A swing and a miss. Thanks for playing.

It does justify Russia's concern over the West's attempts to incorporate Ukraine as part of their network of influence to try and defeat Russia.

[Hermit For Peace]

It would be useful if people didn't post fascist propaganda directly to the forum.

Are you one of those people who enjoy banning books to keep people ignorant of reality?

[ProudModerate2]

Didn't you hear? ... It was being run by Nazis.

(To think how many of the Russian people believe in this, is astounding. But then again, look how many mononic Americans here in the US, believe/believed in trump's BS.)

[John Dule]

Countries willingly choosing to join NATO does not justify Russia’s invasion and attempted conquest of Ukraine. A swing and a miss. Thanks for playing.

It does justify Russia's concern over the West's attempts to incorporate Ukraine as part of their network of influence to try and defeat Russia.

Cool thanks. Still gonna keep killing Russians though.