That's where I grew up. I can assure you, nobody in Russia sees its own territory hosting multiple critical industries with half a dozen cities with >1M population as a "buffer" against China.
"Siberia" is not a well-defined region, BTW, kind of like "Wild Wild West" in the US - more like a general direction they used to send expeditions to, like 200 years ago. Just pointing out how weird your comment seems.
Either you're trolling, or your mental picture of that part of the world needs an overhaul.
The heartland of Russia is west of the Urals. While Siberia has a ton of value, it is also a buffer. The Ukraine & Belarus are the same.
Think about it this way - how is China going to go rolling into Moscow? By holding Siberia, they have an effective buffer against incursion into the most valuable parts of the country.
> That's where I grew up.
Whereabouts? I'm honestly curious as to your experience in Russia and what it was like.
> Either you're trolling, or your mental picture of that part of the world needs an overhaul.
No to both. Why would I be trolling? To me this is a discussion and I'd like to know more about your viewpoint.
Why would China want to go rolling into Moscow? It's full of people and has nothing to offer to a conquerer. A much more practical trophy would be something like Sakhalin island! https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sakhalin#Economy
The point I am trying to make is that Russia is not an aggressor. They're facing the opposite challenge: too much land, too many resources and the shrinking population. They see the raise of China in the East and the threat of islamic fundamentalism in the South. Why on earth would they think of attacking Germany under these circumstances?
If anything, Russians have expected the West to become their partner dealing with those challenges, first after the collapse of the Soviet Union, and especially after the 9/11. But the continuing Cold War era rhetorics and missile deployment plans in those stupid "buffers" make it easy to understand why Putin is disillusioned and annoyed with the West.
"Siberia" is not a well-defined region, BTW, kind of like "Wild Wild West" in the US - more like a general direction they used to send expeditions to, like 200 years ago. Just pointing out how weird your comment seems.
Either you're trolling, or your mental picture of that part of the world needs an overhaul.