The other point is that Russia has no more troops, so has to import them
It seems that Russia is using US/NATO tactics and strategy on the US and NATO in Ukraine, the US shouldn't have given them the idea.
Russia has started using proxies in selected areas, and has been targeting western proxies for a while, now.
Look for more proxies on the battlefield and the negative effects of that.
What's sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander.