[AnAmericanAbroad]

I could see that; Russia gets the Crimean Peninsula, yeah....Ukraine gets a little butthurt, but as a consolation prize, they get to join up with the EU and NATO.

Crimea is Russia’s #1 concern; I doubt they care all that much about the rest of Ukraine, beyond lip service. But Crimea is do-or-die for Russia.

And like you said, if that deal can’t be made, then look out. That’s when TSHTF.

[dfwgator]

And the fact is, this should have been nipped in the bud back around 92-93.

Yes I know they signed an agreement, but anyone with half a brain would know Russia would never give up on trying to get back The Crimea. Yeltsin was just too drunk to care.

[prisoner6]

What I don’t get is the story that Russia wants Crimea for Black Sea ports. Doesn’t Russia have other ports on the Black Sea?

[Jimmy Valentine]

The problem is that Ukraine has significant assets (coal iron ore heavy industry) as well as an enormous agricultural segment. Too it is a buffer against land invasion a traditional worry for Russia. Putin wants it all back

[Carry_Okie]

Crimea is Russia’s #1 concern; I doubt they care all that much about the rest of Ukraine, beyond lip service. But Crimea is do-or-die for Russia.

To control the Dnieper is to control water traffic from the Black Sea to the Baltic.

[Cementjungle]

Precisely.