They have nothing to worry about prior to this. I don’t know the mind of Putin, but I don’t think there was any aspirations for that.
I’m not for this invasion, but they kept screwing around and now they’re finding out.
My biggest concern is the west getting involved and getting us into a nuclear one.
Seems there headed that way with fighters being approved to send. We’re going to get nuked over junk and spare parts. Joy.
If you want to know his mind, you just have to listen to/read what he's been saying for basically two decades about Ukraine, Russia, and the illegitimacy of the dissolution of the Soviet Union more generally.
Just last summer, Putin wrote an essay regarding Ukraine, basically mocking the entire idea of Ukraine existing as a nation at all. One of the things he said was:
"true sovereignty of Ukraine is possible only in partnership with Russia.”
The idea that Putin's interest in Ukraine is limited to protecting a few border areas and security is 't based in reality. He either wants all of Ukraine as part of Russia, or a Ukrainian puppet state controlled by Moscow.