After reading Fiona Hill’s chilling interview yesterday I’ve delved into more big brain historical reads and analysis. I think Trump in office delayed Putin taking Ukraine as Trump was damaging the NATO alliance and US political will against Russia. I was thinking COVID delayed the inevitable but now think it’s the opposite: Putin is himself terrified of getting COVID but doesn’t give a shit about anybody else. Once it was clear Trump was out of office he started making plans.

He sees himself as emperor of the Slavic peoples returning the kingdom to glory. And he’ll risk the deaths of many Slavs in fratricide and potential nuclear armageddon to do it.