Naah, what Putin wants is a military and economic buffer zone between Russia and NATO nations. Since 1990, NATO has crept closer and closer to the Russian border, and this is perceived (correctly or otherwise) as a threat to Russian national sovereignty, so Russia is pushing back. They can't do anything to the likes of Poland and the Baltic states without getting NATO onto them, so they'll push in the places still available, the Ukraine, Georgia and possibly later on, Belarus.
EDIT: Also, 20k!
