They pulled the same thing when Saddam went into Kuwait. They told him they wouldn't interfere if he went in, giving tacit support, then used it as an excuse to join in against him. Fuckheads. Whole thing could've been avoided.
They haven't used Nordstream II to justify pulling the plug on Ukraine yet. But it's the yanks, so anything could happen if they would make a dollar from it. The only people they pretend to appease are, after all, gullible libs whose deepest wish is to believe the US is a beacon of wholemeal goodness.
It's a bit like that friend at school who reassures you that you're in the mischief together, then turns away and let's you take the heat when it goes wrong as if they've never met you before.
Until a whistleblower is Gary Webbed, I wouldn't be surprised to learn that they've been allowed to blow the whistle because it doesn't make a difference to the US's reputation but it does give them a reason to 'betray' Ukraine. (I use the scare quotes because betrayal suggests the US was ever on the side of the Ukrainians.)
Similar to orgs like Amnesty International highlighting western shit; it's useful to an extent but it doesn't change the overall power dynamics and it can all easily be manipulated by imperialists. If anything it just facilitates shifting support from one faction to another. Like Biden claiming to be different to Trump but doing almost exactly the same things.
