> "Could war have been prevented by a Russian-Western deal that halted NATO expansion and neutralised Ukraine in return for solid guarantees of Ukrainian indepe

> "Could war have been prevented by a Russian-Western deal that halted NATO expansion and neutralised Ukraine in return for solid guarantees of Ukrainian independence and sovereignty? Quite possibly." Such guarantees have already failed spectacularly: Ukraine Gave Up a Giant Nuclear Arsenal 30 Years Ago. Today There Are Regrets.: "When the Soviet Union collapsed, Ukraine turned over thousands of atomic weapons in exchange for security guarantees from Russia, the United States and other countries."[1] Lesson From Ukraine: Breaking Promises to Small Countries Means They’ll Never Give Up Nukes: "In the 1990s, world powers promised Ukraine that if it disarmed, they would not violate its security. That promise was broken."[2] Yes, Russia promised in 1994 to never attack Ukraine if it gave up its nuclear weapons: "Ukraine, Russia, the U.S. and the UK signed a 1994 treaty that assured Ukraine it would be safe from attack as long as it gave up its massive stockpile of nukes."[3] [1] https://www.nytimes.com/2022/02/05/science/ukraine-nuclear-weapons.html https://www.nytimes.com/2022/02/05/science/ukraine-nuclear-w... [2] https://theintercept.com/2022/02/27/ukraine-nuclear-weapons-russia-invasion/ https://theintercept.com/2022/02/27/ukraine-nuclear-weapons-... [3] https://www.verifythis.com/article/news/verify/global-conflicts/ukraine-agreed-to-give-up-nukes-in-exchange-for-safety-from-russia-invasion-attack-budapest-memorandum-treaty/536-8748a51f-10ee-47f0-be30-b4088750ee44 https://www.verifythis.com/article/news/verify/global-confli...