> Putin now thinks (with some justification) that this is a template for Russia. As he eyes up tiny independence movements he has to wonder if they'll suddenly grow into NATO backed rebels with major firepower.
World powers backing separatist groups with funding has a much, much older history that Libya in 2011. Heck, Russia is currently funding several.
Of course it does. It was a mainstay of the British Empire. America does it all over. Russia does it too, of course. NATO doing it isnt special.
However, by doing it they do automatically become a hostile, aggressive alliance rather than a defensive alliance and that makes them a potential threat.
It's the combination of Ukraine's ultra-strategic location (for threatening russia) and the threat of joining a hostile military alliance that provoked such a violent response from Putin.
The response from Putin is because the window to conquer Ukraine and force it back under the control of the Russian Empire that Putin dreams of, was closing. He knew that if Ukraine got too built-up militarily, or got too close to NATO, his opportunity would vanish. He similarly dreams of reclaiming Belarus formally. Putin hasn't been shy about any of this, he openly admits the lust for conquering former USSR territory and rebuilding the empire.
Putin lied and claimed a big part of the core issue is not wanting NATO's borders moving any closer. So he attempts to annex Ukraine into the empire and move borders closer to NATO. Obvious lies are obvious.
World powers backing separatist groups with funding has a much, much older history that Libya in 2011. Heck, Russia is currently funding several.