This doesn't explain the Chechen conquest. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Territorial_evolution_of_Russia#Russian_Federation https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Territ

This doesn't explain the Chechen conquest. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Territorial_evolution_of_Russia#Russian_Federation https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Territorial_evolution_of_Russi... Russia had nukes, they had no existential reason to worry about NATO. The key element in all of this is Putin. Not NATO.