The truth is a bit more nuanced.

NATO expansion is viewed by the Russians as a violation of previous alleged agreements and assurances by the West, and a HUGE sore point with the Russians, to the point that hardliners there believe this to be an existential crisis.

So yes, in the higher Russian circles they do truly believe that this is all America's fault, and in truth America absolutely did harm relations with Russia and for better or worse knowingly intimidated them to the point that lashing out became likely.

However, one cannot attack another and then blame someone else for one's own violence. This is not an acceptable response to such grievances; it's how an abuser reacts.

But people don't like complicated explanations, so we settle on "Russia is bad" vs "America is bad" and then pick sides to sling mud from.

Ukraine should have kept the nukes[1]. Whether NATO is in violation of an agreement or not, Russia is definitely in violation of the Budapest Memorandum.

[1] https://www.kalw.org/npr-news/2022-02-21/why-ukraine-gave-up...

Yes, nukes would definitely have made them think twice about invasion...

What NATO expansion are you talking about?

Expansion into the Ukraine. It's Russia's Rubicon.

But really it's the steady pace of the Visegrád Group, Vilnius Group, and Adriatic Charter.

Ukraine doesn't have a right to decide what treaties they it joins?

Technically, they do. In reality, they don't.

The Ukraine isn't one of the big boys on the playground, so anything they do needs the OK of the big boys.

What opinion is this? Why do you hold it?

It's just the way of things. The only way to keep aggressors at bay is to project power, which is why every nation has police forces to ensure order. But there's no world police force, so nations must make do in other ways. And so the more powerful nations decide on the rules that all must in theory follow, and they also decide when they themselves can break those rules. It's why so many nations want their own nukes.

The "big boys" involved in the Ukrainian issue are America, Russia, and Germany. Germany is still too timid to act (owing to the war), and America and Russia still have ideological cold warriors in their government apparatus.

What agreements specifically were made by the West that promised Russia that there would be no NATO expansion?

What agreements are you talking about?

Unbelievable. They talk a big game when it comes to freedom but are supporting a repressive dictator who hates their freedom.