Provoked has to be understood somewhat non-pajoratively. If you accept war is politics by other means and vice versa then this is a reasonably rational take on

Provoked has to be understood somewhat non-pajoratively. If you accept war is politics by other means and vice versa then this is a reasonably rational take on what triggered things for a Russian state obsessed with feeling "sureounded" The boundary of your state you don't defend is the boundary you don't hold might apply to either side of a boundary, which means the first mover to change "provokes" no matter what. It doesn't help that Russia has enclaves. It increases their concern of growing another in Crimea. (I do not regard this provocation as causative and before the inevitable political solution the west and NATO need to commit to a long term massive cost increase to put Russian expansionism on the back foot. The soft war of arson and cable cuts have to stop. Ukraine's territorial losses and other burdens suggest to me it will be a painful messy settlement)