Now, it's not really Putin vs "the West" at this point, it's more like dictatorship vs "free world", hence Putin's attempts to appear as united as possible with China just before the conflict started. But China is not duped, thankfully, as Russia is a just dwarf economy which tries to appear more impressive than what it really is.

Prosperity comes mostly from commerce and freedom of exchange of goods and services and ideas. But in Putin's mind, wealth comes from owning the land and using violence to control people minds and actions, like a king would do during the middle ages in Europe. But that's not the middle ages anymore, people have internet and education now and they can communicate easily, so that achieving whatever plan he has in mind won't cut it.

Putin will lose the war, yes, but will Russia descend with him or will it survive the brutal dictatorship end? First Putin has described Ukraine's political regime as a neonazi one but he is the one doing the violence and the invasion, then Putin has asked the army of Ukraine to topple the government but he is the one deserving it.

Now will the Russian people wakeup and free themselves against tyranny (and unite with the free world?), or will they miss the great History call? It's up to them now.