So, what's going to happen in 2023? Short answer...nobody has a clue.
As the conflict enters its second calendar year, experts predict what could happen on the ground.
www.bbc.com
The comments about Ukrainian advances in Kreminna and Svatove are interesting...and it would be great to see their advances continue. However, I tend to agree that a southern flank to cut the Russian land bridge to Crimea is strategically more important.
The key question is what will Russia do? Will Moscow order a spring offensive and, if so, how will that go? Unless something drastic changes in Russian tactics and operational art, I think they'll make some modest gains without seriously damaging Ukraine's defences.
It will be interesting to see if Belarus takes a more aggressive role in the war as part of that Russian offensive. Such a chain of events would offer an increased threat to Ukraine but, equally, would be the final nail in the coffin for Lukashenko as I don't see the Belarusian populace wanting their sons and daughters dragged so overtly into a fighting war (but that's just my hunch, not based on any serious analysis).