[Petrosius]

The taproot of the trouble is NATO enlargement, the central element of a larger strategy to move Ukraine out of Russia’s orbit and integrate it into the West.

Ukraine is an independent country and is free to join any alliances it wants. Russia has no right to claim that it must be in "its orbit."

[ansel12]

Russia has been exposed, the band-aid ripped off, and they have so vastly been reduced in the world’s eyes.

[Mariner]

“Ukraine is an independent country and is free to join any alliances it wants. Russia has no right to claim that it must be in “its orbit.”

Ludicrous delusion #1.

[PGR88]

Ukraine is an independent country and is free to join any alliances it wants.

LOL. And the CIA, EU and all the NGO money we can muster will make sure they choose to join the correct alliance. And if they do not choose the correct alliance, as Ukraine did in 2010, well - we'll flip the government to make sure they do choose correctly.

[seowulf]

Ukraine is an independent country and is free to join any alliances it wants. Russia has no right to claim that it must be in "its orbit."

Just like Cuba?

[TheConservativeTejano]

The taproot of the trouble is NATO enlargement, the central element of a larger strategy to move Ukraine out of Russia’s orbit and integrate it into the West. Ukraine is an independent country and is free to join any alliances it wants. Russia has no right to claim that it must be in "its orbit."

Russia is out of their minds!!!

Independent Ukraine is o.k. with a lot of folks except for this Putin guy,

[Bruce Campbells Chin]

Exactly - this is like blaming a woman for getting beaten up by her abusive husband because she "provoked" him by going to a class reunion with her friends or something.

The problem is Russia's I sistence that it has the right to direct the policies of its neighbors. If NATO had tried to move nuclear weapons into Ukraine, that's a different issue. But that's not what happened.