it seems pretty silly to go after him for providing historical context to the region.
It is silly, but it’s also entirely predictable. Since they (reddit libs) have no concept of the historical context, when it is provided, all their shitty surface-level vibes-based reasoning for supporting NATO and Ukrainian fascists starts crumbling. So of course they’re going to get upset at being informed of history. It triggers their cognitive dissonance and makes them look like the fools they are.