i’m sorry if this makes some users here feel old lol but i was a preteen and apolitical obviously when this happened so i genuinely know nothing about this situation. does it have anything to do with nato? i’m just curious to get a marxist analysis of this situation
Others have all come in with good reasons. But to summarise
Russian sympathetic region that is arguably historically more culturally Russian than Ukrainian
access to the rail route over Crimea is essential for supply to eastern Europe and Transnistria even in peace
Grain producing region, though not as much as Donbass which is the primary producer for Eastern Europe.
most importantly, Sevastopol. He who contols Sevastopol controls the Black Sea, and even the west has a vested interest in preventing Turkish dominance of the area.