Putin aims to defeat Ukraine and spark long-term confrontation with the West – Lithuanian special services

Director of the State Security Department of Lithuania, Darius Jauniškis, said that the goal of Russian President Vladimir Putin is a long-term confrontation with the West, and incidents on NATO territories cannot be ruled out.

The head of the special service announced this after the meeting of the National Defense Council, which President Gitanas Nauseda convened on January 23, according to Delfi.

"Russia's war against Ukraine will remain the most important factor in shaping the regional security agenda. It is unlikely that Russia's aggression, goals, or strategies will change this year. The situation will likely remain the same as in 2023," Jauniškis said.

The director of the State Security Department of Lithuania emphasized that, at the moment, there are no preconditions for freezing or resolving the war or "any desire on the part of Putin in this direction."

"Putin's goal is the defeat of Ukraine, "denazification" and "demilitarization," control over the occupied territories, but not only," the head of the special service noted.

At the same time, Jauniškis said that Russia is preparing for a "long-term confrontation with the West and has a wide range of tools for this."

"I do not rule out that the Kremlin will use these tools to reduce the support of Ukraine by the West. Information and cyber operations, nuclear blackmail. Incidents on the territory of NATO are also not excluded," said the director of the State Security Department of Lithuania.

As the head of the special service emphasized, illegal migration near the eastern borders of the Alliance, which both Russia and Belarus can use, remains a potential lever of pressure. There is also a possibility of more active pressure from the Russian Federation on the issues of the Kaliningrad region.

"And, of course, we can assume possible aggressive rhetoric precisely because of the situation with the Kaliningrad region," Jauniškis added.