"I actually think that what's going on here is that the West is leading Ukraine down the primrose path, and the end result is that Ukraine is going to get wrecked. And I believe, the policy that I'm advocating, which is neutralizing Ukraine, and then building it up economically, and getting it out of the competition between Russia on one side and NATO on the other side is the best thing that could happen to the Ukrainians. What we're doing is encouraging the Ukrainians to play tough with the Russians. We're encouraging the Ukrainians to think that they will ultimately become part of the West, because we will ultimately defeat Putin, and we will ultimately get our way. Time is on our side. And, of course, the Ukrainians are playing along with this. And the Ukrainians are almost completely unwilling to compromise with the Russians, and instead want to pursue a hard line policy. Well as I said to you before, if they do that, the end result is your country is going to be wrecked . . . ..I think it would make much more sense to work to create a neutral Ukraine."
---------John J. Mearsheimer, Professor of Political Science and author of "The Israel Lobby"
Noam Chomsky: The idea that Ukraine might join a Western military alliance would be quite unacceptable to any Russian leader. This goes back to 1990 when the Soviet Union collapsed. There was a question as to what would happen with NATO. Gorbachev agreed to allow Germany to be unified, and to join NATO. It's a pretty remarkable concession, with a quid pro quo: that NATO would not expand one inch to the East. That was the phrase that was used.
Reporter: So Russia has been provoked?
Chomsky: Well, what happened? NATO instantly moved to East Germany. Then Clinton came along, expanded NATO right to the borders of Russia. Now there are, the new Ukrainian government, the government after the overthrow of the preceding one, the parliament voted, I think 300-8, or something like that, to move to join NATO.
Reporter: But you can understand why they would want to join NATO. You can see why Petro Poroshenko's government would probably see that it's protecting his country.
Chomsky: No, no it's not protecting. Crimea was taken away after the overthrow of the government - right? He's not protecting Ukraine. He's threatening Ukraine with major war. That's not protection. The point is this is a serious strategic threat to Russia which any Russian leader would have to react to.
--------Interview with dissident intellectual Noam Chomsky
"If we move the forces, NATO forces, including American troops, toward Russia's borders, where will we be then? I mean, it's obviously going to militarize the situation, and therefore raise the danger of war. And I think it's important to emphasize, though I regret saying this, Russia will not back off. This is existential. Too much has happened. Putin - and it's not just Putin - we seem to think Putin runs the whole of the universe. He has a political class, that political class has opinions, public support is running overwhelmingly in favor of Russian policy. Putin will compromise at these negotiations, but he will not back off if he is confronted militarily."
------Russian expert Stephen Cohen
"NATO enlargement is utterly misguided and risky. True friends of Ukraine and global peace, should be calling for a U.S. and NATO compromise with Russia."
-------Jeffrey Sachs, world-renowned economics professor
"Ukrainian entry into NATO is the brightest of all red lines for [Russia]. And I have yet to find anyone who views Ukraine in NATO as anything other than a direct challenge to Russian interests."
-------CIA Director Bill Burns
"Moving so quickly [to expand NATO] was a mistake . . . . Trying to bring Georgia and Ukraine into NATO was truly overreaching [and] an especially monumental provocation."
--------Former U.S. Defense Secretary Bob Gates
Source: Video clips and text quotes available at "US/NATO Provoked War Say Most Experts on Russia," Jimmy Dore Show (You Tube) March 3, 2022
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