Estimates by officials from the United States, Europe and the United Kingdom on Wednesday came as the Russian invasion of Ukraine led to a bloody stalemate in much of the country and talks to end a month-long war failed. Speaking to reporters Wednesday, White House Communications Director Kate Bendingfield said the United States believed “Putin is being misinformed about how badly the Russian military is doing and how the Russian economy is being crippled by sanctions because his top advisers fear they are telling the truth “. Intelligence findings also show that Putin is now aware of the situation regarding the information coming to him and that this has led to “persistent tension” between the Russian leader and his military leadership, he said. Washington was presenting the information now to show that the conflict in Ukraine “was a strategic mistake for Russia,” he added. The Biden administration has released US intelligence findings ahead of Russia’s February 24 full-scale invasion of Ukraine, using the information to gather European allies and counter Russian misinformation. Russian President Vladimir Putin launches full-scale invasion of Ukraine late last month [Mikhail Klimentyev/Sputnik/Kremlin Pool Photo via AP] The Kremlin has not commented directly on the US estimates. He had previously denied US reports that Russian forces had suffered major setbacks in Ukraine, with Putin himself saying in early March that everything was “going according to plan”.
“Clear analysis”
Bentingfield’s comments came hours after a US official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told reporters that Washington’s latest assessment was based on recently declassified intelligence, although he did not specify the details. The official said the intelligence community also concluded that Putin was unaware that his army was using him and was losing troops in Ukraine. The findings show a “clear collapse in the flow of accurate information” to Putin and show that Putin’s top advisers are “afraid to tell him the truth,” the official said, adding that the Biden administration hoped the revelation could help. prompted Putin to reconsider his choices in Ukraine. A second US official said the latest assessment could complicate Putin’s calculations. “It is potentially useful,” the official said. “Does it sow discord in the classes? “It could make Putin reconsider who he can trust.” A Russian armored personnel carrier burns amid damaged and abandoned military vehicles following fighting in Kharkov, Ukraine, February 27. [File: Marienko Andrew/AP Photo] A senior European diplomat told the Reuters news agency that the US assessment was in line with European thinking. “Putin believed that things were going well for him. “This is the problem with surrounding yourself with ‘yes men’ or sitting with them only at the end of a very large table,” said the diplomat. Two other European diplomats also told Reuters that the Russian conscripts had been informed that they had taken part in military exercises, but had to sign a document before the invasion that extended their duties. “They were misled, badly educated and then came to find elderly Ukrainians who looked like their grandmothers shouting at them to go home,” one of the diplomats added. Jeremy Fleming, the head of the UK GCHQ, said the British secret services showed that the Russian soldiers had low morale and were not well equipped. “We have seen Russian soldiers – unarmed and unarmed – refuse to carry out orders, sabotage their own equipment and even accidentally shoot down their own aircraft,” Fleming told the Australian National University in Canberra. according to a recording of his remarks. He reiterated US and EU assessments, saying Putin had “massively misjudged” the capabilities of the Russian military. “We believe Putin’s advisers are afraid to tell him the truth,” Fleming added. The Kremlin has not commented directly on Fleming’s comments. The Russian invasion of Ukraine has killed and injured thousands of people and forced more than four million people to flee Ukraine, according to the United Nations. Russian forces continued to bombard the outskirts of the capital Kiev and the besieged city of Chernihiv in northern Ukraine on Wednesday, despite promising to cut off military operations in both cities a day earlier. Ukraine and Western countries have rejected the Russian pledge as a reconstruction ploy by infiltrators who suffered heavy casualties.
