My point about territory is to point out one example, of many, that Russia will claim whatever it wants when it stands to benefit. This is because the OP was ta

My point about territory is to point out one example, of many, that Russia will claim whatever it wants when it stands to benefit. This is because the OP was talking about trust, and I was giving reasons for disagreeing with their pov. The nuclear stuff is also relevant because, again, nuclear disarmament was exchange for security (read: territory) guarantees. In this respect the issue of who can be trusted is clear. Regarding your final point about both countries having corruption and being very close, sure. I don’t think I follow the point though. One country has invaded the other with an army after promising not to do so. That’s what is relevant here, not black markets or mafia or just a culture of cynicism and corruption. If Ukraine wanted to change and stop doing things the old way in 2014 then that’s good I guess.