Russia Ukraine war, page-171490

Your article about two Russian soldiers doesn't do much to suggest that the majority aren't simply DPR/LPR residents.

Depends how realistic you want to make the hypothetical. You could go back even further and ask why the Indonesians felt they had to assist the NT residents... It gets to a point where we may as well be talking about the real-life version.
How to end it?
1. AFU are going to drive them out? If yes, okay. Good luck. More drones needed.
2. Escalate for more NATO countries to join in and combine against Russia. May be bad for the world.
3. Russia leaves without any assurances for the people remaining in the lands being vacated, and knowing there will be attempts to cripple them with reconstruction costs etc? Probably not going to happen. Sorry.

If none of these.... then... what/?

(4. Negotiation)