It's not as much "NATO expanded", as countries, which became "more free" after Gorbachev decided that they'd have a better protection from a repeat of the recen

It's not as much "NATO expanded", as countries, which became "more free" after Gorbachev decided that they'd have a better protection from a repeat of the recent past. It's not a good idea to deny protection to those who asks for it, given the reasons.