It is so refreshing to find someone who recognises that both sides have a viewpoint, and that the situation is far more complex than most people are willing to admit. Thank you !

The only (marginally) good thing about it is that for all his faults, Putin is very good at telling us what his intentions are and sticking to them. He also has learned the lesson (I guess from both the USSR's mistakes in Afghanistan, and the US's mistakes there and in Iraq) that military interventions should be short and sharp, with limited objectives, a clear end position, and a rapid exit plan. Georgia and Kazakhstan were both over in a matter of days, and Syria had very specific objectives and Putin didn't allow any mission creep to set in.

I hope this is over as quickly as possible and with the minimum of loss on both sides. I feel very sad for the ordinary people of Ukraine, who have become a pawn in a bigger conflict.