Hold on there Andy, because you want it to be, does not make...

Hold on there Andy, because you want it to be, does not make Ukraine a democracy. With the opposition dead or in jail it is not even close, and their corrupt puppet leader is working for the West, not the Ukraine people..
Russia is a democracy of sorts, but with an approval rating of 80%, there is not much chance of Putin losing an election in the near future. I think Russia has great culture and should be considered part of Europe. Putin considers Russia as part of Europe. I would love to visit Russia, but it is too cold to live there. Where the palm trees won't grow, I don't go.
I don't think your self delusion is helpful to you or anybody else. If Ukraine is losing, and they are, so far, what is the point of trying to convince everyone the opposite. You forget, given the choice, the people of the Donbas and Crimes, voted overwhelmingly to join Russia. Why is that do you think? You are going to say the referendums were fixed, but the fact the Donbas republics have been fighting a war for almost a decade to break away from Ukraine since the 2014 coup, the referendum results are probably correct.