Those fear-mongering politicians just want to drag us into a war between Russia and the West.

The relations between Russia and the West have always been very tense, with both sides strongly distrusting each other. Russia had a strategically important naval base in Crimea that Ukraine was lending them. When Ukraine had their small revolution Russia feared it would lose access to that base so it took steps to keep it (took over Crimea).

To take over Crimea and to make sure Ukraine does not take it back, Russia used pro-Russian rebels from Ukraine. Russia armed and trained them, and now these groups are fighting the Ukrainian government because Crimea isn't the only part of Ukraine where a lot of people want to join Russia.

So that's all there is to this conflict. Putin wants to protect an important military asset located in Crimea. He's not trying to rebuild the soviet union or whatever.

But fear-mongering politicians on both sides want us to believe otherwise. Once everyone in the West is scared that Russia will try to conquer the rest of Europe, and once everyone in Russia is afraid that the West is trying to destroy them by weakening their economy and 'stealing' Russia's allies in Eastern Europe, we'll all be eager to start World War III "to protect ourselves before the other side attacks us".

And while us common people are killing each other on the battlefield, or waiting in our basements for a bomb to wipe us, the politicians who had been fear-mongering will be hiding safely away, living comfortably far from the front lines, not affected by the economical collapse caused by the war, and getting richer thanks to their ties with the military industry.

If we knew what was good for us, we would drag fear-mongering politicians out of their office and down the street by the ankles, throw them in a court room and try them for treason and corruption or anything applicable, because those sacks of shit are leading us straight to death and destruction for their personal gain.

tl;dr Russia only wants Crimea, won't invade Europe or nuke us or start WW3, any politician who is saying otherwise is a corrupt piece of shit trying to drag us in a war so they can profit.