Even in the most optimistic of outcomes, Ukraine will have fallen long before any kind of popular action has managed to take place. Inertia is a hell of a thing. Plus pulling out of Ukraine without accomplishing strategic goals is literally not an option for Russia. Doing nothing, was worse than doing this. NATO had a chance to at least appear to care for the Ukrainian people, or people in general, by acceding to Russia's security demands. Then, when as is claimed Russia would have attacked anyway, they would have had the moral high ground. Thankfully, they are as shortsighted as they are greedy. And instead they send weapons to Ukraine, prolonging the inevitable fall and increasing the cost in human lives for both sides. Which is a-okay to them, since it's not the lives of their people being wasted.