rh200, Obama basically said the US has the right to intervene anywhere if US interests are threatened. Going by that Russia can intervene anywhere if its interests are threatened, come to that so can anyone else at anytime anywhere!
Russia cannot be expected to tolerate Ukraine in NATO or the EU.
As a citizen of a NATO and EU country I see no gain for us by having Ukraine in either NATO or the EU.
Washington makes the rules up as they go along, they really should not complain if others decide to do the same. One could say Washington has set a precedent.
I certainly think seeing the Russians taking a hard line in Eastern Ukraine or Novorossiya as they call it now to protect the civilian population is a good thing. They have essentially created a new country, liberated people from a tyranny they no longer wished to be part of.