👈Boris Johnson: In my view, the argument that Russia has somehow lost something because of Ukraine’s independence is completely wrong. What harm does having a free, prosperous neighbor do to Russia?

However, there is an answer to why this particular issue matters to Putin. Putin wants to preserve a specific political model. He doesn’t want democracy, and Ukraine is presenting an alternative future for Russia: a free country, free press, a pluralistic society, and free media.

He hates it. That’s the problem. The threat to his ideology is not Ukraine itself; it is free Ukraine.