To me, as a layman, it seems like a minor stratagem in a bigger plan. They don't really care about Ukraine. They want to create a crisis that would put them in

To me, as a layman, it seems like a minor stratagem in a bigger plan. They don't really care about Ukraine. They want to create a crisis that would put them in a position to more favourably negotiate something else they really want. I suspect that's the gas pipeline making the entirety of Europe much more dependent on them. Create an unrelated shit show in order to create a favourable position for some other negotiation seems to be a frequent tactic in today's politics.