The Russian invasion of Crimea has led to the possibility that Russia will try to incorporate Crimea into Russian, not Crimean, territory. The move is a blatant violation of international norms and law, but border changes are not that infrequent in world politics. Check out this video of European border changes over the last 1000 years.
The Russians, of course, believe that their actions are fully consistent with international law. Their position is that an illegal coup occurred in Ukraine, and that therefore the normal constitutional processes of Ukraine cannot be followed. Therefore, the Crimea is not bound by the laws of Ukraine and can legally decide to join Russia. The Western powers disagree: the Ukrainian Parliament (the Rada) has not been dissolved and therefore the continuity of legal control has not been breached.
Mikheil Saakashvili was president of Georgia from 2004 to 2013 and he has written a short piece for the Washington Post about the Russian invasion of Georgia in 2008. His perspective is highly critical of the Western powers and their limited defense of Georgian sovereignty in that episode. While his position is very clear about what he believes should be done in Ukraine, one should read the essay with a critical eye as to whether the circumstances are so similar.
World Politics News 
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