May 11, 2022 at 7:51 am
image source,EPA
US intelligence warns Putin is preparing for protracted war in Ukraine
U.S. intelligence has warned that Putin is preparing for a protracted war in Ukraine that may not end even a Russian victory in eastern Ukraine.
The warning comes amid ongoing fierce fighting in Udon. After Ukrainian forces thwarted Russian attempts to seize its capital, Kyiv, Moscow is now refocusing on the Donbas region.
Still, U.S. intelligence says Russian and Ukrainian forces remain at a standoff.
U.S. intelligence director Avril Haines told a U.S. Senate hearing on Tuesday (May 10) that Putin still intends to “achieve goals beyond the Donbass” but he “faces personal ambitions and Russia’s current the incompatibility of conventional military capabilities”.
image source,Reuters
U.S. Director of National Intelligence Haynes told a U.S. Senate committee hearing that Putin still intends to “achieve goals beyond the Donbass.”
Haines added that Putin “may” expect U.S. and European Union support for Ukraine to weaken as inflation, food shortages and energy prices worsen.
However, as the war continues, Russia may turn to “more drastic means”, although Moscow will only use nuclear weapons if Putin believes there is an “existential threat” to Russia.
US Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) Director Scott Berrier told the same hearing that the Russians and Ukrainians were “at some level of deadlock”.
In fact, in the last few battles, Ukraine has claimed to have retaken 4 strongholds in the northeastern part of the Kharkiv region.
The Kyiv military says Cherkasy Tyshky, Ruski Tyshky, Rubizhne and Bayrak have all been recaptured from Russia .
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Ukraine was successfully gradually driving Russian troops out of Kharkiv. The area has been bombed by Russian forces since the beginning of the war. But he said Ukrainians “should not create an atmosphere of undue moral pressure, expecting victory every week or even every day”.
Battle in Eastern Ukraine
In the city of Izyum, where the battle for control of the area is underway, the bodies of 44 civilians have been found in the rubble of a collapsed building. The five-story building collapsed in March as residents hid in basements to avoid Russian shelling, but rescuers had just arrived at the building.
Izyum is located in the southeast of Kharkov and is known as the gateway to the Donbass. It is surrounded by forests and rivers, making it a natural fortress.
In addition, the final battle for Mariupol fell at the Azov Steel Works. Hundreds of Ukrainian fighters hid in underground tunnels and bunkers at the factory, surrounded by Russian troops.
The capture of Mariupol is a key battle objective for Moscow, as doing so would give it control of one of Ukraine’s largest ports and easier access to the wider region.
In the port city of Odesa, missiles hit several buildings overnight and shook nearby houses. The Ukrainian armed forces said one person was killed and five wounded.