"if it's not threatening him or his Russia....and it wasn't"
Well, you live in utopia Max, where all known international rules, laws, conventions are strictly adhered to by all countries of the world, Unfortunately, the reality is completely different to your concept on how the real world operates.
Military development of Ukraine by the USA way before 2022, was a serious concern to Russia, which found those developments threatening. Russia was not threatened by Ukraine. Russia was threatened by what the USA was turning Ukraine into, militarily.
MOSCOW, October 22, 2021
(Reuters) - President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday that the Western-backed military development of Ukraine posed a serious threat to Russia, two days after the U.S. defence secretary staged a show of support for Kyiv and encouraged its aspiration to join NATO.
Whether it did or not, Putin said, Russia's interests were targeted.
"Formal membership (of Ukraine) in NATO may not take place, but military development of the territory is already under way," Putin told the Valdai Discussion Club. "And this really poses a threat to Russia. We are aware of that."
