Is Russia giving up the Ukraine areas they care about?

Let Snitz mansplain the war! The red area is what Putin cares about. It's a buffer zone between Russia and Ukraine, contains a large populace of pro-Russian inhabitants, but more importantly, has the bulk of the nation's energy and Lithium assets.

The land taken back by Zekinskys troops is of little concern to Putin and difficult to hold. Don't worry Vlad will be back. While Zelinsky is running out of men, Russia is coming back with 200,000 freshly trained troops. Plus they'll keep bombing the country into the next century. Did I mention there going to shut off the energy tap this winter?