If instead we listened to what they were actually saying about the expansion of NATO toward their borders this conflict could have been avoided. Actually the W

If instead we listened to what they were actually saying about the expansion of NATO toward their borders this conflict could have been avoided. Actually the West did listen, and as a result took the crucial step of formally denying the NATO memberships requests of Ukraine and Georgia in 2008. But Russia invaded anyway -- because all this NATO noise was never the real reason they sought to pacify Ukraine in the first place.