[fullmetal]

At its core, NATO is a defensive alliance against a capricious, nuclear-armed entity.  No NATO country has actually been invaded at this point, and Ukraine is not a NATO member.  Let's not get too crazy about what individual nations should or shouldn't have done earlier, as satisfying it would have been to see a concerted response that didn't go nuclear.

Re: stagnation, is it the minefields?  Russian defensive artillery?  I don't think it's rainy/roadlessness season yet, is it?

MAJ Rose is correct in that the US has a lot to learn from the Armed Forces of Ukraine.  They are fighting an increasingly 21st century war, now with asymmetric aerial assets (drones) and electronic jamming against an opponent adapting to the same.  The numerous early retirements of upper echelon Russian officers has made way for younger, more effective leaders imo (rather than the older, politically-inclined cadre).  Without control of the air, this is going to be a long but winnable road for Ukraine.

If Putin retires earlier than expected, I would like to see hostilities cease, which means blame gets shifted onto Putin loyalists (who are offered up to the Hague as war criminals).  However, there's a real possibility that the war continues as internal politics could result in no one wanting to answer for all the evil done in Ukraine.  I guess it depends on who the FSB decides to obey in a post-Putin world.

[fullmetal]

At its core, NATO is a defensive alliance against a capricious, nuclear-armed entity.  No NATO country has actually been invaded at this point, and Ukraine is not a NATO member.  Let's not get too crazy about what individual nations should or shouldn't have done earlier, as satisfying it would have been to see a concerted response that didn't go nuclear.

Re: stagnation, is it the minefields?  Russian defensive artillery?  I don't think it's rainy/roadlessness season yet, is it?

MAJ Rose is correct in that the US has a lot to learn from the Armed Forces of Ukraine.  They are fighting an increasingly 21st century war, now with asymmetric aerial assets (drones) and electronic jamming against an opponent adapting to the same.  The numerous early retirements of upper echelon Russian officers has made way for younger, more effective leaders imo (rather than the older, politically-inclined cadre).  Without control of the air, this is going to be a long but winnable road for Ukraine.

If Putin retires earlier than expected, I would like to see hostilities cease, which means blame gets shifted onto Putin loyalists (who are offered up to the Hague as war criminals).  However, there's a real possibility that the war continues as internal politics could result in no one wanting to answer for all the evil done in Ukraine.  I guess it depends on who the FSB decides to obey in a post-Putin world.