The problem is that Putin is not just a nasty guy domestically, but also has made clear he wants to recover as much of the international power of the old Soviet

The problem is that Putin is not just a nasty guy domestically, but also has made clear he wants to recover as much of the international power of the old Soviet Union, and the only way he can accomplish that is to take over or bring under his influence a lot of his neighbors. Or are you one of those people who think that every time the US gets in a conflict with some other power, it always the US's fault?