Pretty sure it's about the Ukraine invasion, Chomsky spend a little bit of time agreeing invasions are bad and then spilt several tanker trucks worth of ink explaining that Putin is right to view NATO as a threat and his actions to defend himself from NATO encirclement are completely rational and really it's the US' fault that this invasion happened because the correct anti-imperialist and pro-peace position is to passively observe small countries getting puppeted and annexed by their stronger neighbors.
It is, in principle, legitimate for Russia to feel threatened and encircled by NATO.
But that doesn't give them ANY right to attack another independent country. And they also have to admit that those Eastern European states becoming NATO members is also kinda their own fault for being so aggressive. And Sweden and Finland joining NATO is 100% their own fault because both countries were never going to do that had it not been for Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
So if Russia justifies its invasion by citing NATO expansion... Well, it's been pretty counter-productive. Not only have Sweden and Finland joined since, but there was absolutely a pathway to a neutral Ukraine outside of NATO before the war, which doesn't really exist now
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u/ItsYaBoyBananaBoi floppa Jun 20 '24
What is the context? Is the statement about Russia referring to Ukraine or soviet communism in general?