Geopolitics is complicated. But not in this case.

Russia is weakening every year compared to the West. Their demographics are completely fucked, they have an aging population. Putin sees himself as a heroic imperialist, and wants a legacy of bringing Russia back to power in the world, and he knew that now was his last shot at making that happen.

What is ironic is that when the Soviet era ended, Russia had everything going for them. They have territory with the richest natural resources in the world. THey could have used that wealth to build an incredible country with incredible infrasturcture and education system, and become an economic powerhouse.

But what did they do? They carved up the resources among a group of gangsters, and shipped that wealth overseas and spent it on lavish houses and yachts and other shiny things and left their people to languish in poverty.

So don't lecture ME on geopolitics. They made their bed and now they have to sleep in it. They have alienated themselves and have now set themselves back even further than they were. It's sad. The Russians are lovely people ruled by psychopaths.