(1) While there were signed treaty agreements ruling out NATA expansion (beyond Germany) -- notes by Baker (and others) do acknowledge that the Soviets/Russians were left with something of an "understanding" that this wouldn't happen.
For example we have Baker's assurance to Gorbachev that “neither the President nor I intend to extract any unilateral advantages from the processes that are taking place,” and that the Americans understood that “not only for the Soviet Union but for other European countries as well it is important to have guarantees that if the United States keeps its presence in Germany within the framework of NATO, not an inch of NATO’s present military jurisdiction will spread in an eastern direction.”
(2) As Gorbachev himself (whom the other commenter in this thread seems intent on reminding us is still "dead", for some reason) put it: “It [NATO expansion] was definitely a violation of the spirit of the statements and assurances made to us in 1990". Along with other statements that it was a bad idea and unnecessarily provocative.
(3) Unfortunately everything changed with the unequivocal violation of Ukraine's territorial sovereignty 2014, which irrevocably upturned both the 1994 Budapest Memorandum -and- whatever sweet nothings were exchanged by Gorby and Baker (now also quite dead) in 1990. And thoroughly legitimized any means Ukraine might seek to protect itself, including joining NATO if it so wishes -- from that point ever onward.
(4) In any case -- the idea that the arc of events in above in any way comes even close to legitimizing, minimizing or excusing the current mass slaughter that is currently being inflicted on the people of Ukraine; or that is places "blame" on the West, or creates some kind of metaphysical equivalence of imperial powers; or that the best course of action for the Ukrainians at this point is to sit back and accept the designs that that large country to the north has on their territory and their future -- is, in the scheme of things, pure and utter horseshit. Something only a self-deluded intellectual can believe.
(1) While there were signed treaty agreements ruling out NATA expansion (beyond Germany) -- notes by Baker (and others) do acknowledge that the Soviets/Russians were left with something of an "understanding" that this wouldn't happen.
For example we have Baker's assurance to Gorbachev that “neither the President nor I intend to extract any unilateral advantages from the processes that are taking place,” and that the Americans understood that “not only for the Soviet Union but for other European countries as well it is important to have guarantees that if the United States keeps its presence in Germany within the framework of NATO, not an inch of NATO’s present military jurisdiction will spread in an eastern direction.”
(2) As Gorbachev himself (whom the other commenter in this thread seems intent on reminding us is still "dead", for some reason) put it: “It [NATO expansion] was definitely a violation of the spirit of the statements and assurances made to us in 1990". Along with other statements that it was a bad idea and unnecessarily provocative.
(3) Unfortunately everything changed with the unequivocal violation of Ukraine's territorial sovereignty 2014, which irrevocably upturned both the 1994 Budapest Memorandum -and- whatever sweet nothings were exchanged by Gorby and Baker (now also quite dead) in 1990. And thoroughly legitimized any means Ukraine might seek to protect itself, including joining NATO if it so wishes -- from that point ever onward.
(4) In any case -- the idea that the arc of events in above in any way comes even close to legitimizing, minimizing or excusing the current mass slaughter that is currently being inflicted on the people of Ukraine; or that is places "blame" on the West, or creates some kind of metaphysical equivalence of imperial powers; or that the best course of action for the Ukrainians at this point is to sit back and accept the designs that that large country to the north has on their territory and their future -- is, in the scheme of things, pure and utter horseshit. Something only a self-deluded intellectual can believe.
It's really quite straightforward, actually.