Ukraine

[Bayleaf]

74% of Americans (not sure how many were asked!) are in favour of declaring a no-fly zone. They're far enough away not to be directly affected by this, so that's easy for them to say!

[Blaze]

This gives a good explanation why NATO/the West does not want direct involvement :

What exactly will it take for Western powers to get involved here?
The West has made it clear it will only get involved militarily if Russia attacks a Nato country. Ukraine is not in Nato but nearby countries Poland and the Baltic states are, hence Nato has been rushing reinforcements to bolster those countries' borders.
That said, western countries are supplying Ukraine with "defensive" equipment to help it try to repel the Russian invasion. This includes anti-aircraft and anti-tank missiles.
Some are calling for Nato to introduce a no-fly zone to stop Russian planes from carrying out airstrikes on Ukrainian cities. But Nato says it won't do that as it would entail shooting down Russian planes and that could lead to war with Russia.

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-60617145

As for what the American people think, they're 4,000 miles away and most don't seem to have the faintest idea what goes on outside America.

[niemeyjt]

If Russia and NATO have a war, ICBMs will travel 4000 miles.

[ExMontpelliérain]

Talking of which, there’s nothing like getting your priorities right (& this is nothing like…etc., etc.).

[Char]

It sounds like they're getting ready for it all to start kicking off in Bosnia now - the EU peacekeeping force has upped it's number of troops in the area and France is going to be conducting fast-jet training flights over Bosnia. Something to do with Russian backed Bosnian separatists.

[manonthemoon2]

It's a shocking situation created by a mad dictator who wants to rule the world.

[niemeyjt]

No. He wants to recreate the old Soviet Union though.

[exile]

But the old Soviet Union had tentacles stretching across the world. Would he stop at just "reuniting" the Baltic states, Moldova, Georgia, a bunch of "stans"?

[niemeyjt]

Well, the Baltic States are now NATO - but I would be looking at escape routes if I lived in Moldova or Georgia.

The Stans are mostly still aligned with Russia in CIS.

I hope he is dead before he can go much further.

[Blaze]

Countries claiming neutrality don't seem to bother Russia whose "warplanes have blatantly intruded into Swedish airspace" (BBC)
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-60626536

Russia claims to have invaded Ukraine because it wanted to save the Ukrainian people from neo-fascism. What President Putin really seems to want to ensure - apart from avenging what he sees as Ukraine's treachery in breaking away from Russia - is that there is no question of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky joining Nato.
In fact, that genuinely doesn't seem to have been a possibility within the foreseeable future.
But there is a real irony in the fact that the war in Ukraine now seems to be giving Finland - and perhaps Sweden - real cause for considering whether they should join the Western military alliance.