I mean eventually, the world will have to accept Russia's sovereignty over that land. Because there's simply not much they can do to win back those lands (unless they want to start a nuclear war).
That land could be conquered back without any nuclear war. Ukraine recaptured swathes of land (including Kherson, the capital city of a now “Russian” province) without triggering any nuclear war. If last year’s counteroffensive had been more successful, it could have recovered even more land.
So it is possible to recover those lands, and I wouldn’t be surprised if in a few years time exactly that will happen.
Russia has tried multiple times in the past to expand by peace, but seems like with no success. War is merely the last option after all of the peace option are exhausted with no tangible return. Pretty normal.
Resorting to war is an acknowledgment of the failure of their policies and inability to project soft power.
Back when Yanukovych was the president of Ukraine, Russia tried to emulate the EU playbook by offering Ukraine a huge economic deal to accelerate Ukraine into the Union state, but unfortunately, In return, the Maidan happened, we don't know who's to blame in Maidan exactly, but the idea that Russia just invade out of nowhere without first exercising the peaceful option is ridiculous.
Maidan happened simply because the EU is much better at the geopolitical game than Putin. They managed to steal Ukraine from his sphere of influence without firing a bullet.
So this war is partly the Ukrainian fault for not accepting the Russian proposal for more integration which forced Russia to heavy-heartedly embrace the violent option. Simply put Russia has put forward the proposal for an enlarged Russia without war, but Ukraine chooses the enlarged Russia with war instead.
No, this war is 100% Russia’s fault. They should have given up when the Ukrainians refused to be part of the “Russian World”. Your theory is like saying a rape victim is the only one at fault for the rape happening, because she refused to do it with the aggressor, so he had no other choice but to rape.
opting for war when all cards for peace is not a Russian only phenomenon, the West used this option in Iraq when their hope to topple Saddam by popular revolt failed, they proceed to enlarge their influence by invading it.
And that was the West’s biggest geopolitical blunder of the last few decades. Not only did they lose credibility in the world stage, but they also lost Iraq to Iran’s sphere of influence. A total failure despite winning the war.
So never say that Russia has not given Ukraine any option. They did, but unfortunately, that peaceful option to enlarge Russia didn't move forward as expected.
They gave Ukraine a bad option, and the Ukrainians refused. The Russians should have given up, but instead they proceeded with this bloody unprovoked war that hopefully will mark the beginning of the end of their evil empire.