The American intelligence community believes that Russia is facing a shortage of ammunition and troops, which may force it to move to holding and defending its existing positions, prolonging the war.
The New York Times writes about this with reference to the words of the Director of National Intelligence of the USA, Avril D. Haines.
According to her, after the latest failures on the battlefield, Putin began to realize the problems facing the Russian forces and may adjust his strategy in the short term.
"Even as the Russian offensive continues, they are experiencing high casualty rates. Putin is likely better understanding the limits of what his military is capable of achieving and appears to be focused on more limited military objectives for now,” commented Haines.
As the director of US National Intelligence pointed out, Russia may choose to continue the war in Ukraine, even if it means long pauses in offensive actions, as the best chance to achieve its strategic goals.
"If Russia does not initiate a mandatory mobilization and identify substantial third party ammunition supplies, it will be increasingly challenging for them to sustain the current level of offensive operations in the coming months," predicted the Director of National Intelligence of the United States and added that as a result they may completely switch to containment and defense of previously occupied territories.
"In short we do not foresee the Russian military recovering enough this year to make major territorial gains," she emphasized.
- NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said that the Ukrainian defense of Bakhmut may be defeated in the coming days, but it will not necessarily be a turning point in the war.