Ukrainian War Developments

Doesn't NATO charter forbade invitation of new members who are currently engaged in external war? So by default, Ukraine is not eligible because it's engaged in a war against Russian-back separatists in Donbass? So Russia already achieved it's aims. I don't get why it would invade? To annex Donbass because it's Russian ethnic majority? To annex Ukraine to restore the Soviet Empire? I don't see the invasion talk.... unless NATO consider a 'separatist war' to be domestic only and therefore not 'external war'? So perhaps Russia will invade Ukraine to make NATO exclude Ukraine by forcing Ukraine into a "external war" situation against NATO charter?

Russia already got Crimea. So there is no need to further invade Ukraine to achieve that goal.
There is little point in invading Ukraine as a land grab. It is not like Russia lacks land. The only reason they would invade would be in case their strategic interests were in danger for some reason.

Donbass and Crimea are different matters. Crimea is the base of black sea fleet and by extension Russia's access to medteranian sea and oceans. Donbass (de Jure Ukraine land) is a leverage and gate to domestic Ukrainian affairs. Breaking it from Ukraine will remove that leverage. It is best for Russia to keep Dombass part of Ukraine on the surface, so Russia can always play Ukrainian domestic politics through (eastern/Russian) Ukrainians.

I don't think Russia ever need officially invade Ukraine for any purpose. The Donbass rebels can do anything that Russia would do. Russia can even send "volenteers" like PVA in Korea, or boost the numbers of rebels with Russian Russians. Afterall, there is no difference between Russian Ukrainians and Russian Russians, with Ukrainian government out of the region, who can tell where the people are from?

Why doesn't Russia join NATO? That would solve all Problems. Without enemy there is no war.

Intrepid said:

Why doesn't Russia join NATO? That would solve all Problems. Without enemy there is no war.

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Wasn’t this offered by the USSR like several decades ago and the US said no.

FriedButter said:

Wasn’t this offered by the USSR like several decades ago and the US said no.

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It did. Nice little discussion of the event:


Yeltsin also asked to join NATO:


and in 1995 the Brit MoD proposed it, too:


Russia joining NATO is problematic from the sense that a number of nations in NATO consider Russia a threat. There's probably a long thread of a 'what-if' for Russia being a member of NATO. Not sure it belongs here.

Either this is a big brain move or a disaster waiting to happen

"A Ukrainian vice prime minister, Iryna Vereshchuk, said that Mr. Zelensky was considering putting the question of whether to join NATO membership to a vote of the Ukrainian people."

Overbom said:

Either this is a big brain move or a disaster waiting to happen

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This is Ukraine. Almost assuredly a disaster.