That is food for thought , but I don't agree with him very much.
Russia isn't heroic to use economic and military leverage to influence their neighbors , and the USA is not villainous , to use economic and military leverage to influence on the same targets.
If Russia were about what is good for Russians rather than what is good for Russia I would have more sympathy for them.
What Ukrainians really need is a government that was determined to be good for its people , Bulgaria and Georgia could use something like that also.
Before WWII Poland stood up to the German government and did not allow the Germans to dictate their form of government nor who they chose as allies. Poland got into a lot of trouble over this , but in my opinion they would not have been in less trouble by being more compliant to a neighbor that was prone to invade them in any case.
If it is President Obama's idea to make the sanctions rob the Russians of the profit from their strongarm tactics on their neighbors , I think I shall cheer him on, what would be the better alternative?