Russia is not at war with Ukraine. There is a civil war going on in Ukraine, between the west backed authority in Kiev and Novorossiya which declared its independence following the referendum of 11th may .
Unfortunately, It cannot be explained in simple terms. It's not Russia vs Ukraine, it's rather Ukraine vs Ukraine or Russia vs USA. The united states and the EU have brought to power nazis from Swoboda party in Ukraine, now the junta is obliterating the south east of Ukraine...that's what is happening right now. Russia don't want that instability there and is doing its best to impede their attempts to exterminate the Russian speaking Ukrainians whose freedoms has always been infringed and who are in favour of a federalization.
Ukrainian olygarchs have been running the country down to the ground for many years and were doing that pretty successfully even with that amount of help that Russia provided to that country and its people. But they've been also severely brainwashed by their media etc that are fully controlled and funded by the state department, now they think that Putin is to blame for all their hardships and sufferings which is sheer nonsense indeed.
I'm German but I've got lots of friends from Russia and even from the south east of Ukraine, they provided me with a lot of information regarding that issue, but as I've just said it's a LOT of information and frankly, I don't know how to tell you that in a few phrases.
There is an internal conflict in Ukraine. Kiev's Junta kills innocent people of South-East because they voted for independence during referendum 2014-05-11. People of Lugansk and Donetsk had to resist. Watch Chronicle of Genocide.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ozdz7fM...
Russia is not in a war
Basically the U.S. supports a criminal Ukraine regime that has been killing its countrymen in the east and south over 2000 of them. 700,000 have fled out of Ukraine. Their homes are demolished. They were short of water and food until the Russian aid was allowed in after Kiev played around for a week.
Putin's regime was falling early this year in support, so he needed some more victories and conquest, to give people some joy and pride. Crimea was easy, but Ukrainians are fighting for easter parts of their country, giving kremlin's gremlin a bad surprise.
