[Mariner]

I don't buy more than 1/2 of your contentions.

While only about 38+% of Ukraine is ethnic Russian, outside of the far Western provinces most are either pro-Russian or ambivalent.

There will not be an insurgency against Russia except if they take the historically Polish/Western provinces.

And they've essentially offered those to Poland.

Ribbentrop II.

[zeestephen]

Wikipedia says just 17% ethnic Russians in Ukraine, including Crimea, so my thesis was built on that number, which, obviously, may be wrong.

Still, if Ukraine is so comfortable with Putin, what was the point of breaking away from Yeltsin and the Russian Federation?

The Referendum for Ukraine's independence received more than 90% of the vote in 1991.

[Paul R.]

Not all Russian speakers will be loyal to Putin, as well.