Wow. That's an interesting claim. Russia, through poor intelligence, thought they would be welcome by Ukraine, and that they could take Kiev quickly. It had nothing to do with sparing the country of destruction, because it is obvious that Russia don't give a fuck. Now, the Western Allies were not sure how resilient Ukraine would be, so they didn't think they could or should send modern weapon systems to push Russia back. That has changed.
And it is apparent that Russia is suffering because of it. They cannot field enough modern equipment to mount an offensive. They cannot get enough troops to fight. They are trying to dig into the territory they basically already controlled with the hope of holding another sham referendum to give them some "legitimacy" in trying to hold on to that territory. However, Ukraine seems to have a different idea about that. From what we can see, they appear poised to launch an offensive and push Russia out of those areas. They seem to have better tactics and their troops have higher morale. Plus, the modern weapon systems are knocking out Russia positions and equipment.
If this war has done anything, it is destroy the myth of Russia's military might. I'm not saying I'd want to invade them or anything, but they cannot really sustain an offensive. Their equipment, from uniforms and radios to armoured vehicles and GPS systems are inadequate. Their military leadership sort of reminds me of the early days of WWI. When a office was killed, the men were basically left to fend for themselves. They were not told the major objectives or what they should do. So, early offences floundered. Russia's troops do not have a competent NCO class like most modern militaries. They need officers to lead, and they tend to die or be of low quality. So, again, offensives flounder at the first hint of trouble. Unless Russia declares this an actual war, the man power shortage will only get worse.