There is another aspect that Moscov gets out of the whole shitshow: Economical integration/growth/success of an EU-aligned Ukraine is slowed down. I believe fa

There is another aspect that Moscov gets out of the whole shitshow: Economical integration/growth/success of an EU-aligned Ukraine is slowed down. I believe falling behind former Sovjet countries economically is a continuous pain point for the Putin regime; but getting overtaken by Polish, Slovenian or Czech former "compatriots" is one thing (those being much closer to Europe), but the same happening with Ukraine (or Belarus) would be a whole other story, and seen as complete failure of the regime domestically. Preventing that is a worthwile outcome for Putins government by itself.