Ah, yes, Russophobia, e.i., any opposition to Russian imperialism. There was no conflict with Russia until it decided to invade Ukraine. Go home and we can be at peace again. Russia, it’s your play.
Why did Russia invade Ukraine?
You make a fair point. It’s not Russophobia to criticize Russia for starting a bloody shooting war.
On the other hand, it’s not NATO-phobia (if there is such a term) to criticize NATO for taking actions Russia saw as provocative.
There are no clean hands here. I think Trump 2.0 could sort this all out. I doubt that anyone else can.
Russia warned in 2008 that Ukraine and Georgia would be considered “red lines” if NATO expanded into Eastern Europe. This warning was explicitly stated by Russian President Vladimir Putin in April 2008, during a speech in which he emphasized that the presence of a powerful military bloc on Russia’s borders, guided by Article 5 of the Washington Treaty, would be perceived as a direct threat to Russia’s national security.
But nice try.