Tornado Alley (PROG)

[fuagf]

It's Putin who claims NATO expansion as justification. Neither Western governments, nor i, nor anyone here give it to him.

"By your logic of NATO being on Putin's doorstep giving him justification, you give free reign to the most anti-American activities of Iran. We did have, after all, hundreds of thousands of American soldiers on their doorstep in Afghanistan and, at just about the same time, hundreds of thousands of American soldiers on their doorstep in Iraq.
P - You're just carrying water for dictators with a flimsy excuse, the idea that Putin had some justification is the logic of his enablers. Ukraine voluntarily gave up all of its many nuclear weapons that were left there after the collapse of the SSSR, which led to the Budapest Memorandum of 1994, in which Russia was supposed to help guarantee Ukraine's security.
P - When has NATO ever attacked a non-aggressor nation? Putin's supposed rationale was delusional at best but more likely that of a mad wannabe empire builder.

You are right that anyone accepting that justification for invasion would be carrying water for the invaders. On the Budapest Memorandum:

The Budapest Memorandum on Security Assurances comprises three substantially identical political agreements signed at the OSCE conference in Budapest, Hungary, on 5 December 1994, to provide security assurances by its signatories relating to the accession of Belarus, Kazakhstan and Ukraine to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT). The three memoranda were originally signed by three nuclear powers: Russia, the United States and the United Kingdom.[1] China and France gave somewhat weaker individual assurances in separate documents.[2]

The memoranda, signed in Patria Hall at the Budapest Convention Center with US Ambassador Donald M. Blinken amongst others in attendance,[3] prohibited Russia, the United States and the United Kingdom from threatening or using military force or economic coercion against Ukraine, Belarus, and Kazakhstan, "except in self-defence or otherwise in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations." As a result of other agreements and the memorandum, between 1993 and 1996, Belarus, Kazakhstan and Ukraine gave up their nuclear weapons.[4][5]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Budapest_Memorandum

That's right. And Putin claims self-defense. And don't forget about the thousands of Ukrainian children Putin has kidnapped:

Putin’s Talk with Tucker Carlson... and America: A Mixture of Blunt Lies and Toxic Propaganda
[...]Putin can stop the war at any time. Instead, he keeps sending troops .. https://www.polygraph.info/a/fact-check-russian-falsehoods-about-negotiating-with-ukraine/6833747.html .. into Ukraine and makes laws to legitimize the occupation of Ukrainian territory and the abduction of thousands of Ukrainian children .. https://www.polygraph.info/a/fact-check-putin-disguises-forced-deportation-of-ukrainian-children-as-compassion-/6974528.html .
https://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/read_msg.aspx?message_id=173818900

Thought it was clear that i put myself into Putin's shoes

Bottom line is the world is a fractious place and no one knows for sure how anyone, particularly a guy like Putin would react to a heavy hit.
There is also the idea that Putin does have some justification for not wanting NATO on his doorstep.
Putting yourself into others shoes is something we should all do, being careful then to stay as objective as possible. And balanced.
https://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/read_msg.aspx?message_id=173908926

in mentioning his justification for his invasion Have posted many making it clear i didn't agree with it.

We agree on that one.