I firmly believe that the U.S is the reason for the mayhem in the East. We need to approach this situation with a lot of context. Some of it is really easy to find too. For example, when the U.S was asking the question "how exactly are we going to relate with Russia, now that the Soviet Union has broken up?" We first approached it from the idea that we can work with them since things have gone our way and they clearly seem willing to work with us, at least have a partnership of some sort. Given that as part of a deal between the U.S.S.R and the U.S was that NATO would "not move one inch further east" once Germany has been reunited. This created a security guarantee for the Russians, that they haven't had in a long time. Think about it, they've been waiting for decades for NATO forces to zoom on into their country. They are a proud people, just like the U.S and they have their trusts and betrayals in their history. So much so, that sometimes I wonder why they even trust at all. Putin, I believe, is a realist; and as such would not invade a country to try to create some greater Russia or restart the former Soviet Union! Before the 2008 NATO announcement that it "welcomes Ukraine's move to join the alliance", did Putin did anything to piss off the U.S? He was so well liked by Dubya (George W. Bush) that he gave him nicknames and said he was able to see the goodness in the man's soul! These are a facts, please research anything I ever say and see for yourself.