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U.S. government on Monday warned that Russian forces might intensify
military operations in Ukraine after weeks of stalled ground progresses.
“Russia is repositioning its forces to concentrate its
offensive operations in eastern and parts of southern Ukraine, rather than
target most of the territory,” national security advisor Jake Sullivan told
reporters at the White House.
Sullivan said when Russia started its so-called ‘special
military operation’ war, the plans were to seize the capital of Kyiv, replace
the Zelensky government and take control of much if not all of Ukraine.
“Russia believed that it could accomplish these objectives
swiftly and efficiently,” however, Moscow has failed to capture Kyiv.
Recent reports suggest that Russian forces in Ukraine have
been plagued with several logistical problems on the battlefield, including fuel
and food shortages.
“All indications are that Russia will seek to surround and
overwhelm Ukrainian forces in eastern Ukraine,” Sullivan said. “We anticipate
that Russian commanders are now executing the redeployment from northern
Ukraine to the region around the Donbas.”
Renewed attacks expected
The Biden administration now expects the renewed ground
offensive in eastern Ukraine will likely “continue to launch air and missile
strikes across the rest of the country to cause military and economic damage,
and frankly, to cause terror,” Sullivan mentioned.
A senior U.S. Defense Department official told
CNBC that the Kremlin has moved about 65% of its forces near Kyiv to Belarus.
The official said the Pentagon believes Russian troops are
being resupplied with additional manpower in Belarus before deploying back to Ukraine,
and the majority will likely move to the Donbas region.
The U.S. believes the “vast majority” of Russian forces are
still in Ukraine and that Kyiv is still under threat, the official told CNBC.
While Sullivan didn’t provide a timeline of how long the Biden
administration expects the war to last, he said, “It may not be just a matter
of a few more weeks.
“This next phase could be measured in months or longer,” he
added.
Picture Credit: Axios