What would the US do if Russia threatened putting Missiles in....say Cuba?...No,not friendly is it?
The Russians have every right to fear attacks from the West they have been attacked from that direction three times since 1814(by Napoleon the Kaiser and Hitler)Unprovoked on all occasions,the West should have been trying to bring Russia on board since the end of the cold war,instead we continue to treat them as a pariah state.
We gave them little credit,for "the great Patriotic war" and hardly a pat on the shoulder for the peaceful break up of the "evil Empire"..
Perhaps we should have kept the weapons and dismantled the Nato alliance,and spent more time on building relations and showing the Russians more respect and Gratitude for their efforts to get over the cold war.instead we goad them by threatening to put missles on their border,of which they have every reason to be sensitive.The Russians may not be as democratic as the west,but they are now a capitalist country and do not have an ideology to spread. Since the break up of the soviet Union we have taken are eye off he ball,and what is happening is a direct response to the Wests lack of interest and Diplomacy in the region.
Putin is a strong leader,and has a lot of support especially among young Russians,who like the fact that he is making Russia strong again.Russians would like to be more Democratic,but not if it means being weak,and walked over by the West.
When the Dick Cheney's of this world speak big and get hawkish without any intention of backing up that talk,it only ups the tension and does nothing to calm the situation.Lambasting the Russians for invading a sovereign territory rings hollow after the united states did just that in Iraq, looking after their own interests ,This is a time for diplomacy not taking sides.
The Russians are looking after their interests,thats what country's do,and we in the West have helped shape those interests for good or ill.
This is not the Sudetenland,their are no Ideological struggles here.this is more August 1914.Thank god Georgia is not in NATO.