> I also wouldn't want to be Mongolia My (limited) understanding is that Mongolia is mostly steppe, and the Mongolians have several thousand years of claim to

> I also wouldn't want to be Mongolia My (limited) understanding is that Mongolia is mostly steppe, and the Mongolians have several thousand years of claim to the land, neither of which is true of — say — Outer Manchuria. Russia will struggle to get much sympathy if the Chinese execute a “Crimean Gambit” there.