While Russia has "explained" that Ukraine \, as a country, doesn't really exist and, besides, its president is illegitimate.

In the meantime, they have (with the alleged approval of their citizens by "vote") annexed the following oblasts of Ukraine:

Donetsk Oblast: Russia claims the entire region but controls only about 75% of it as of August 2025.
Kherson Oblast: Russia declared its annexation of the entire province. Following a Ukrainian counteroffensive in late 2022, Russia was forced to retreat from the city of Kherson and other areas on the west bank of the Dnipro River. As of late 2024, it controls roughly 76% of the oblast.
Luhansk Oblast: Russia claims the entirety of this region in eastern Ukraine. By mid-2025, Russian forces claimed to have taken full control.
Zaporizhzhia Oblast: Russia claims this southern province despite only controlling about 73–74% of it as of late 2024. The regional capital, Zaporizhzhia, remains under Ukrainian control.
Crimean Peninsula: Russia: Region annexed in 2014

The West has been fine to let the Russians expend arms, treasure and people in the meatgrinder of the Ukrainian line of contact. They have burned through a major portion of their mothballed Soviet armor vehicle and their economy is being pummeled, not only by sanctions, but by shifting to a wartime manufacturing economy.

The Russians have made it clear that nuclear weapons won't be used unless there is an existential threat to Russian territory.

We are getting to the point when there seems to be a possibility of countries who are members of NATO moving military assets into Ukraine to guaranty whatever an upcoming peace might look like. In that position it is natural to assume that there will be an aggressive border. It is to the West's advantage to continue to grind down the Russian military but at what point will crossing the border into what is now Russian-occupied oblasts of Ukraine deemed an invasion of Russia?

Frankly, so far, there is no benefit to Russia signing a cease fire as they have the resources to continue bleeding Ukraine - and the West does not currently have the ability to ship ammunition (of all sorts) at thee speed that Russia - supported by its allies - can. I imagine that the reason that North Korean soldiers were apparently only used on the Russian side of the border (in Kurtz) was to avoid setting a precedent of foreign troop formations crossing the borders.

This war is far from ending. President Trump apparently has two goals:

1) End the war quickly so he can clinch his Nobel Peace Prize (something such despicable people as Barak Obama and Greta Thunberg "stole from him")

2) Not do anything to upset Putin (whether because Putin "has the photos" or out of close friendship with the Russian leader, or because his family has been offered lucrative business opportunities)

In my opinion, the EU leaders rushed to support Zelensky in Washington to forestall his being forced to accept defeat to achieve Trump's goals. Figuring that Putin will diddle along and not meet with Zelenski and not sign a cease fire, I expect that, in a couple of weeks (the third or fourth "couple of weeks" Trump has outlined), rather than apply additional tariffs (well there aren’t any, so I guess it wouldn't be "additional") or sanctions on Russia, he will blame Zelensky for not signing the Russian offer and say that he can't do anything and the two sides should just duke it out without the US being involved.

At some point, in order to punish Russia enough to force them to call aa halt, Ukraine has to manufacture (and pay for) enough long-distance drones to match the Russian's 100+ a day.

Jeff