Even our ABC says countering NATO is likely one of the main reasons, in early 2022. https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-02-24/russia-ukraine-military-operation-vladimir-putin/100789878 Possible rationales include preventing Ukraine from joining NATO, a personal quest to reunite Soviet countries and regain the USSR's former glory, to increase Mr Putin's domestic influence or to provide guaranteed access to fresh water for the Crimea peninsula. Alexey Muraviev, an associate professor of National Security and Strategic Studies at Curtin University, told the ABC Mr Putin wanted to use Ukraine as a "neutral buffer zone" against NATO.
