Could Russia's invasion of Ukraine have been avoided? | Michael McFaul

Could Russia's invasion of Ukraine have been avoided? Former U.S. Ambassador to Russia (2012-2014) Michael McFall is convinced that no. Michael A. McFaul and the President of Kyiv School of Economics, associate Professor of the University of Pittsburgh Timofiy Mylovanov discussed Russia's war against Ukraine.
Dr. Michael A. McFaul served for five years in the Obama administration, first as Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Russian and Eurasian Affairs at the National Security Council at the White House (2009-2012), and then as U.S. Ambassador to the Russian Federation (2012-2014). He is Director at the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies, and an International Affairs Analyst for NBC News and a columnist for The Washington Post.
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[@e.g.c.3936]

Michael McFaul is awesome.I have followed him for a while and he never disappoints me. Thanks for inviting him today. Eleanor in DC

[@HUZ9k3s5w]

Video seem partly broken since after ca 12 min in, it replays the first 12. mins again.

[@maryhart141]

I like Michael McFaul a lot. Very much. But he seems over the top distressed. Looks like he hasn’t been sleeping. Seems very distracted. Hyper almost. This makes me feel very worried...

[@fredlee4250]

Wouldn’t it have been possible if Ukraine has taken neutral stance ?

[@angeloregina]

Hearing and understanding is a skill. He covered and answered it correctly. The answers is that NATO is not the problem. It is loosing control politically in Ucraine, meaning democracy. Your, John Meirsheimmer, thinking forgets that Russia is not a democracy but Ucraine is moving to democracy. Neutral stance will not help, Ucraine needs to be a an undemocratic country for Russia, which they doesn’t want to be. Do you want to live in a undemocratic country?

[@mityador]

Ukraine _was_ neutral since its independence in 1991. Its military was joke, they gave up all the nukes inherited from USSR and gave them to Russia, and its integrity was guaranteed in return by Russia, USA and Great Britain. The neutrality was explicitly declared in Ukraine's constitution, respected by its governments as well as population. And then in 2014 Russia annexed Crimea and triggered creation and then provided support to those so called republics on its territory (Luhansk, Donetsk). Asking them to be neutral after 2014 is the same as asking them to give up and submit their country to Russia. You can only be neutral only as long as the relevant powers around you respect your neutrality. That's simply not the case here.

[@hazelwray4184]

@@mityador Ukraine honoured its neutrality and then in 2014 Russia annexed Crimea? - you can't be serious

[@Marcel-ct9wq]

@@hazelwray4184 That neutrality ended when the US helped austing yanukovych just before crimea crisis because he refused to play their game, and Victoria Nuland selected a new gouvernment that would.