I coud be utterly wrong, but I do not think the motives are so rational. I think the motives are cultural : this is what Russia has done over the course of its

I coud be utterly wrong, but I do not think the motives are so rational. I think the motives are cultural : this is what Russia has done over the course of its entire existence, and it continues to this day. There is simply a culture of territorial expansionism, with whatever justifications are handy at the time; that old saying - there's a good reason, and then there's the real reason.