This is the background history to the SMO according to Wikipedia
In March 2014, following Ukraine's Revolution of Dignity, anti-revolution and pro-Russian protests began in Ukraine's Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts, collectively 'the Donbas'. These began as Russia invaded and annexed Crimea. Armed Russian-backed separatists seized Ukrainian government buildings and declared the Donetsk and Luhansk republics (DPR and LPR) as independent states, leading to conflict with Ukrainian government forces.[22] Russia covertly supported the separatists with troops and weaponry. It only admitted sending "military specialists",[23][24] but later acknowledged the separatists as Russian combat veterans.[25] In April 2014, Ukraine launched a counter-offensive, called the "Anti-Terrorist Operation"[26] (ATO), later renamed the "Joint Forces Operation" (JFO).[27][28] By late August 2014, Ukraine had re-taken most separatist-held territory and nearly regained control of the Russia–Ukraine border.[29] In response, Russia covertly sent troops, tanks and artillery into the Donbas.[30][31] Ukrainian officials called this a Russian "stealth invasion".[31][32] The Russian incursion helped pro-Russian forces regain much of the territory they had lost.[27][33] Alexander Borodai, former 'Prime Minister' of the DPR, said 50,000 "Russian volunteers" had fought in the first five months.
About 14,000 people were killed in the war: 6,500 Russian and Russian proxy forces, 4,400 Ukrainian forces, and 3,400 civilians on both sides of the frontline.[15] The vast majority of civilian casualties were in the first year.
So Putin thought a special military operation was required because 3,400 civilians, many of them ethnic Ukrainians were killed in a genocide by Nazis? This SMO has seen 100,000's killed on both sides and the destruction of the Donbas. Arguably if Putin had left the Donbas and Crimea alone none of these fatalities would have occurred to civilians or soldiers. Putin had no right to invade Crimea, and his actions in Donbas amounted to another unjustified invasion.
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