[dtquad]

The "Russia is just defending their geographical sphere of interest" argument for Russia's invasion of Ukraine only comes from Western isolationists and pro-Russia activists.

The actual internal political communication within Russia makes it clear that they don't consider Ukraine and the Ukrainian identity as legitimate. That is why they want to annex Ukraine. Putin launched the invasion in a speech where called Ukraine a fake nation that shouldn't exist.

[jampekka]

And Bush launched the Iraq invasion on the totally false pretexts of WMD and 9/11 involvement.

The stated reasons for starting a war are rarely the true reasons. Although Putin did, among other "reasons", say NATO expansion is a critical factor.