Volkodav
RF tried to work with US, but the west never gave up the idea of not letting RF become a strong and truly independed, and they created maidan. What was supose the RF do ? Roll over and die ?
Really? Come on. That's just nonsense.
A change of government in Ukraine means relatively little for Russia. Russia has already caused more damage to its international standing, economy, and relations with Europe, by it's current actions. The Russian government had a plethora of options which did not include dying.
1) Leave them alone. EU integration was not promised, nor is it likely that Ukraine would have found it easy to follow in the footsteps of other eastern European nations. There was a good chance that Poroshenko would have been little more then a Yuschenko 2.0. A little more corrupt, with a few more ties to the oligarch, and less ins with the nationalists.
2) Take a tough economic stance against Ukraine. That's partially being done now. Ukraine's primary export market is Russia, and the CIS countries. Shut down the Russian market, and apply pressure to CIS partners to do the same. The Ukrainian economy would have headed for rapid ruin (it already is) without any war in the east. And the EU doesn't need another problem child on it's hands.
3) Buy out the Ukrainian elites. They're rabidly anti-Russian, because they're quite afraid of being cleaned out by Putin the way Russian oligarchs were. But they have a price. Especially when EU membership would mean those elites would have to start paying taxes, following the law, etc. This option might have been harder to do, but certainly possible.
4) Buy out some EU governments, and get them to block Ukrainian EU membership. A few more fat contracts for French shipbuilding, or a few more investment into Bulgaria and the Czech Republic. Lord knows the VMF needs more then a couple of Mistrals.
5) Invade and annex Eastern Ukraine. Quickly, cleanly, with minimal bloodshed. It would worsen relations with Europe, and it would certainly mean the rest of Ukraine is lost. But it would protect Russian nationals, it would likely impoverish the rest of Ukraine, and it would avoid this massive bloodshed. In addition it would mean Russian federal money for the eastern Ukrainian provinces, to get their infrastructural development, as well as local government services, up to at least the level of an average Russian province. Certainly a much less foul option then what's happening now.
