Putin is in no hurry to end the war. Holds all the cards. Probably the world's senior statesman. The West has no idea who these people are - didn't in 1812, didn't in 1941, don't now. Maybe they can't make a car that works but they are in the forefront of missile technology. It is the West (basically America/Biden and previous Democrat admins) that has destroyed Ukraine, not Russia. If the West wants to negotiate it had better hurry up. Putin hasn't laid hands on the iconic city of Odessa yet showing admirable restraint. Odessa is pretty much 100% ethnic Russian and Russian speaking and is a stones throw from Kerson Oblast that Russia now controls. If he takes Odessa Ukraine loses its only remaining access to the Black Sea. It becomes like Belarus. Might as well absorb it into Poland at that point. At least there is Gdansk.