Has it ever occurred to you (or any other putinists here) that some - well, most, with rare exceptions being totalitarian shitholes like Belarus - countries/nations/people do not want to join the new Russian/Soviet empire. And would fit against it regardless of what the US or NATO does or doesn't do.
Rhetorical question, don't bother.
Effectively, that is the only reason for the war. Putin does not give a s***t about history or "corruption" (really? Putin against corruption? you have to be desperate trying to sell that) or "nazism" (really? Putin being a supremacist himself??) nor the people's wishes. He only cares about power and money and has shown absolute disrespect for other humans in general to the point of sociopathy.
He has failed to hold a grip on former USSR territories mostly because he is a ruthless despot that, at most, looks at Russian people to avoid being kicked out and is willing to kill en-masse or one by one by assasination anyone that expresses a different view. Who the **** wants to be ruled by a despot?
On regards to US intentions, I think they were clearly accepting Ukraine as a commercial and strategic partner and using economy, diplomacy and seduction to bring them over the west view of the world.
History has taught over and over that wars in Europe are lost for all European countries and won by the US and, on this case China who will emerge stronger from others fight.