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In 2020, Ukraine was the poorest country in Europe with a GNI of $3,570, slightly lower than Gaza or El Salvador. Russia looked at its own "aggressive attitude"
by AftHurrahWinch 4y ago
In 2020, Ukraine was the poorest country in Europe with a GNI of $3,570, slightly lower than Gaza or El Salvador. Russia looked at its own "aggressive attitude" and "giant stockpile of conventional weapons" and picked the weakest, easiest target they could find after eight years of ground work in Donbas.
If your theory is correct, Russia threatened the Atlantic alliance who reacted by... doubling the economic power of their terrifying neighbor with Nord Stream. Then Russia used those resources to occupy Donbas and Crimea, so the Atlantic states reacted decisively by... starting construction on Nord Stream 2.
If the Atlantic alliance worried about Russia they would have prioritized relations with petrostates that are even less of a threat.
Or, perhaps the Atlantic states aren't genuinely afraid of Russia.
- dragonwriter 4y ago> Or, perhaps the Atlantic states aren't genuinely afraid of Russia. Or, perhaps, the Atlantic states were divided and uncertain of the threat from Russia, with well-publicized divisions, until the ramp up of Russian rhetoric and material positioning for general war in early 2022. Before that, they weren't as a whole engaging in the conflict at all, so any explanation of why they are doing so as a bloc has to address itself to the time when they have been doing so as a bloc.