Please watch the documentaries. Russia has no need of anything Ukraine has.
The way to make your product worth more, is to corner the
market.
Europe needs food, natural gas, and oil.
Russia has a lock on Europe’s supply of natural gas. If it
wants to play hardball, Europe can be blackmailed.
Now, what happens if the Ukraine develops its large natural
gas preserves? Russia doesn’t have absolute control any
longer.
It wanted to tie up the Ukrainian gas deposits.
It now occupies all Ukrainian land over and adjacent to
the Azov gas preserves.