The Russian army performed poorly and suffered huge losses, Burns said. Furthermore, the Russian economy has suffered “long-term damage,” he added, noting that some of the gains made by Russia’s middle class over the past 30 years are being eroded.
According to Burns, Russia’s reputation is now “heavily undermined” and its weaknesses “exposed”. He noted that RThe Russian population is increasingly “concerned about the cost of war”. This was underlined by the head of the CIA during partial mobilization, more Russians of military age left the Russian Federation than went to the front. Putin has many problems, he said.
Burns said the Ukrainian military is “determined to keep the pressure up” but also needs time to re-equip and resupply.
At the same time Putin gives every reason to believe he will not back down and continue the war of attrition as long as possible, Burns concluded, adding that “nothing will stop Putin”.
February 24 Russian President Vladimir Putin announced the invasion of Ukraine under the pretext of a kind of “demilitarization” and “denazification”. Initially, according to the SBU, Putin planned to seize Ukraine in a matter of days. But failed blitzkrieg.
In April, the invaders were expelled from the northern regions of Ukraine, and parts of Kherson and Kharkov regions were left unoccupied in the fall. Fighting continues in southern and eastern Ukraine.
