The ukrainians could have avoided it but stupidly thought that begging for weapons from NATO & US would somehow prevent it.
Get real.

The Chinese knew that the cost of invading Australia to gain the port of Darwin was too great. Instead they simply bought it.
Perhaps if the ukrainians had done the same?

@FrayedBear The US and NATO were either naive or deliberately provocative in asking Ukraine to join NATO but that does not excuse the actions of Putin

@Moravian What do you think Boris will do if the Isle of Man sells a site to Russia to build nuclear missile sites?

@Moravian or N.Korea?

@FrayedBear Unfortunately I have nuclear weapons much closer to me that the IOM. Polaris missiles in the Clyde Hopefully when Scotland finally leaves the Union we can send them back to England.
I presume you are referring to nuclear weapons in Ukraine. They were sent back to Russia in the 1990's after the break up of the Soviet Union and if you think NATO would put nukes there you are delusional.

@Moravian How does Putin & his generals know that NATO won't put nuke missiles in Ukraine?

What for revealing Pentagon information. You'd better hound him like Assange.

I thought the rethuglicans claimed that entitlement?