Your link has a link to this article:
Russia’s War Has Been Brutal, but Putin Has Shown Some Restraint. Why?
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/05/03/...tion=click&module=RelatedLinks&pgtype=Article
I'm surprised if you didn't read it already.
Reading between the lines in the OP and that ^ here's my assessment.
The Soviet Union and China were in a proxy war with the U.S. in Vietnam. This established an unwritten rule that the invading country does not directly attack the country supplying arms. If we had nuked Hanoi or Haiphong or both Or if we had used tactical nukes there you think that would have won the war for the U.S? Fuck no, the Vietnamese would have hunkered down that much harder as well as having the entire international community against us (even more than they already were).
If Russia somehow outright wins this war they're already stuck with a huge rebuilding job. The more they destroy cities the bigger that job becomes.
And they've already made enemies for generations against a people they once considered brothers.
I just can't see what victory looks like to them.
We don't know how this will play out but we can learn from history.
There are people high up in govt. much smarter and with much more information than you and me (excluding Brandon). Putin has already miscalculated. We don't know how this will play out but we can learn from history. It does not bode well for a Russian victory in the long run. They'll be OK, just a huge waste of resources only to satisfy their ego.
In summary, as long as the Ukrainians are willing to fight and as long as the West is willing to supply arms, this will continue and the longer it does, the worse it looks for Russia.
I'm not saying we didn't make mistakes, especially with supporting the coup that installed Zelenskyy, but it's too late now to turn back.