What most Ukrainians want, passionately, is to be left alone by Russia.

They do not want to be considered Russian;
they do not want to be brought back under Moscow’s rule;
they do not want to “rediscover,” at gunpoint, what the Kremlin believes is Ukrainians’ true identity.

Instead, they wish to be treated as a nation that has the right to an independent existence.

Most importantly, Ukrainians do not want to be invaded, annexed, displaced, murdered, plundered, tortured, abducted, and raped in the name of the
mythical “historical unity” and
“East Slavic brotherhood” that shape Russian President Vladimir Putin’s thinking.

https://foreignpolicy.com/2024/11/22/russia-war-ukraine-peace-putin-history-identity-sovereignty/