I understand that the Russians are taking losses. I am pointing out that they do not have to. They have the weapons to flatten the Ukraine. It would not be hard. But they are trying to infiltrate it. They took the Crimea without much resistance. And I assume they thought they would have less resistance in other parts of the Ukraine. They are trying to win without destroying the place. They are trying to win and allow the pro-Russian population to survive. Their biggest goal is to kick the CIA out of Ukraine. As much as anything, its a war against our government. Its Russia vs. the CIA. The Ukrainians are just in the way.
“They have the weapons to flatten the Ukraine. It would not be hard.”
It is hard, if you do it legally, just shooting at military targets. Indiscriminate use of force (like carpet bombing cities) is a violation of the Geneva conventions, which Russia is a party to. Deliberate targeting of civilians is also a crime (which they are also committing).
“They are trying to win without destroying the place.”
That initial quick takeover failed, and during the second week, they gradually ramped up attacks on civilians and civilian infrastructure (electricity, water, heat, hospitals, schools, fuel, food), starting in Kharkiv. That has now become central to their current strategy of bombarding cities to compel surrender. Mariupol is now the poster boy for that deliberate strategy, but they continue to pursue it several cities - apparently to the very maximum they are able to, given the amount of artillery and ammunition supply they have available. They are pretty much doing their damned best to destroy as much as they can, short of WMD and high altitude bombing with dumb bombs.
“Their biggest goal is to kick the CIA out of Ukraine.”
It seems like seizing control of territory and resources is their main goal, either directly, or through installed surrogates. Putin’s huge personal fortune comes largely from skimming off of the production of oil and gas. When significant offshore hydrocarbon deposits were identified in Ukrainian waters (2012), planning and preparations quickly got underway for his 2014 invasion of the Ukraine, where he seized Crimea, and its territorial waters.