The question of ‘why’ Russia invaded Ukraine has been forgotten amid war’s fog. Greed and malice partially explains it. History, geopolitics and culture reveals more.
A country which has more land than anyone else on Earth is not grabbing territory for territory’s sake. Logically, Russia should be giving away land to anyone who might manage it better. But that’s not how Putin thinks. He is pursuing a dogged policy of annexations – first in Georgia, then in the Crimea, and now of four further Ukrainian districts.
Logically, Russia’s neighbours have more to fear than Russia has. But that’s not how Putin feels
Equally, a country which owns the world’s biggest stockpile of nuclear weapons can hardly be genuinely threatened by a non-nuclear neighbour. Logically, Russia’s neighbours have more to fear than Russia has. But that’s not how Putin feels.
Putin’s declared aims include the wish to ‘re-unite’ Russia with Ukraine, and the ‘duty to protect’ Ukraine’s Russian minority from nationalists, fascists and neo-Nazis.
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