I posted this on another thread, but consider:
Everybody is glossing over the big question - Do the Russians want a cease fire? I don’t think they do. And beyond motivation, why would they accept stopping at the current line of contact? I think they will insist on a withdrawal to the borders of the disputed oblasts, which is a deal breaker for Ukraine ... today.
No, Putin does not want a cease-fire with no progress made on anything else. He will see that as giving Ukraine a chance to rest and prepare more fortifications. Keeping the pressure on in multiple areas at once has been the strategy and it is paying more benefits now than ever which is why Z is ready to “negotiate”.