The USA does not believe that Ukraine will be able to return Crimea in the near future.
This was stated by four senior Pentagon officials at a secret briefing before the Committee of the House of Representatives on Armed Forces Affairs, writes Politico.
Three of the people said the Pentagon does not believe Ukraine has or will soon have the ability to push Russia out of Crimea, and a fourth person called the briefing "ambiguous," but the sense is that victory for Ukraine in the Crimea offensive is "not guaranteed."
The speakersʼ assessment echoes what General Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, recently said: "I still maintain that this year it will be very, very difficult to expel Russian troops from the entire occupied territory by military means. That doesnʼt mean it canʼt happen. It doesnʼt mean it wonʼt happen, but it will be very difficult," he said on January 20.
One source told Politico that the Zelensky administration is "furious" about Milliʼs remarks as Ukraine prepares for a major offensive this spring. Ukrainians also point out that during the almost year-long war, the U.S. intelligence was constantly wrong.
Pentagon official Sabrina Singh commented on the information that allegedly sounded at the briefing: "We are not going to comment on briefings behind closed doors, we will not talk about hypotheses and we will not speculate on possible future operations. In terms of Ukraineʼs ability to fight and regain sovereign territory, their excellent actions in repulsing Russian aggression and constant ability to adapt on the battlefield speak for themselves."