[Zhang Fei]

[“When a country that is already the largest on Earth, by far (i.e. almost 2x), decides to expand its territory, we are by default interested in the outcome, as a matter of national security.”

That assertion is entirely debatable by serious people.

And being interested in the outcome is not the same thing as having a core, essential, real interest.]

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What part is debatable? The fact that Russia is almost 2x as large as the 2nd largest country on Earth? That Russia has decided to expand its territory? Or that we are by default interested in the outcome?

And when I say we are interested, I mean in the sense of having an essential, real interest. When a country this big wants to expand its territory, its ambitions are insatiable. It was one thing for Germany, at 1/35th Russia’s land area, to want lebensraum. It’s quite another for Russia to do so.

[Mariner]

“we are by default interested in the outcome, as a matter of national security”

We disagree that there is an essential US National Security interest at stake.