Even it's a shithole, and completely demolished, it's still Ukrainian land, and the rights to it belongs with the Ukrainians. Russia is the invader; remember that?
It was a hypothetical. In reality, to the victor goes the spoils. It matters not who was in the right. Politics failed and any differences are now being settled by military means. Mexico has not gotten back the Southwest of the United States. Spain has not gotten Gibraltar. Argentina has not gotten back the Falkland/Malvinas islands. When a matter is settled by military force, might makes right.
Should a miracle occur and Ukraine regain some town destroyed by the Russians, it is worse than finding bare land. When it has been pounded at length by bombs and artillery, the underground infrastructure is destroyed. There needs to be removal of all the old before there can start to be a new. And Ukraine has no money and lost half its population.
It has nothing to do with the way things ought to be. Ukraine is being destroyed and Ukraine has little hope of regaining anything it has lost. If/when it loses Odesa, it has slim hope of surviving as a nation state. It's charm offensive never succeeded with its neighbors. When allowed access to transport its goods through, but not into, Poland, its goods appeared on the Polish market and then the Poles shut the border and dumped Ukrainian goods on the side of the road. Should it lose its sole seaport, it will have to charm one of its neighbors to permit imports and exports. For rebuilding funds it could ask buddy can you spare me a trillion? Or the more Ukrainian approach might be give us a trillion or we are going to blow up the Zaphorizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP).
Ever hear of the broken window policy?
When a broke window needs to be repaired, there are always plenty of people and companies ready to jump in to repair the damage, with the hope of getting rewarded for the repairs.
After WW2, the U.S.. and many other countries were ready to jump in and do the repairs. Ukraine is no different, and there are plenty of governments and organizations ready and willing to jump in and do the repairs. Billions of dollars, if not trillions to be made in Ukraine, once the battles are over. Russia too will be needing to repair it’s military infrastructure, and even the U.S. and other NATO nations will jump at the opportunity.
Do, don’t just think about the devastation; think about the post-war reparations. Reparations may not bring back dead people, but the survivors will carry on, with the help of the rest of the world. In fact, even as the war carries on, and destruction happens. repairs are happening,with help from within and outside Ukraine.
Meanwhile, Ukraine may be losing a lot of people and infrastructure, but so is Russia, and Russia is a poor country and can’t continue the fighting for too long.