russia may switch to defense in Ukraine due to lack of resources, US intelligence says

The US intelligence believes that russia currently lacks the ammunition and troops to make significant territorial gains in Ukraine in 2023.

It may shift to a strategy of holding and defending existing positions, prolonging the war, The New York Times reports.

Avril Haines, the director of US national intelligence, says after recent setbacks on the battlefield, russian dictator vladimir putin has begun to realize the challenges russian forces are facing and may adjust his strategy in the short term.

russia may choose to prolong the war against Ukraine, even if it means long delaying offensive actions, as the best possibility to achieve its strategic goals, Haines told the Senate Intelligence Committee.

"Even as the russian offensive continues, they are experiencing high casualty rates," the top intelligence official said.

In addition to personnel losses, the russian military reportedly suffers from critical morale problems and ammunition shortages.

"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," Haines added.

She also said russia was making "incremental progress" in the embattled city of Bakhmut in Ukraine's Donetsk Oblast, but it was not a "particularly strategic objective."

Haines' words echoed recent remarks by US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin that the fall of Bakhmut would not be a significant setback for the Ukrainian military.