The intelligence community of the United States believes that Russia “probably does not want a direct military conflict with US and NATO forces, but there is potential for that to occur.” The Annual Threat Assessment report released on Wednesday added that Russian President Vladimir Putin may drag US-led West to Ukraine war in an effort to win back public support.
The threat assessment report added Putin’s escalation may also delve from the larger opinion that the United States is using Ukraine as a proxy to weaken Russia. The narrative around Ukraine’s military successes is only a result of US and NATO intervention could presage further Russian escalation.
The report said that the Ukraine war is reshaping the geo-political dynamics and the equations of China and Russia with the West are also going through a change.
The US intelligence community added that how the conflict and its consequent geopolitical spillover will unfold remain highly certain. It claimed that the escalation of the conflict into a military confrontation between Russia and the West carries the risk that the world has not witnessed in decades.
“Russian leaders thus far have avoided taking actions that would broaden the Ukraine conflict beyond Ukraine’s borders, but the risk for escalation remains significant,” said the report.
Putin is expected to persist in utilizing various means to promote its own agenda and hinder the interests of the United States and its allies. Such means may include military, security, hostile influence, cyber, and intelligence tactics. However, Russia’s economic and energy leverage is likely to become less valuable over time, the report said.
According to the US report, Moscow is likely to intervene in crises if it deems that its interests are at risk, the potential risks of its actions are minimal, it identifies a chance to exploit a power vacuum, or if it perceives an existential threat in its vicinity that could jeopardize Putin’s leadership and pose a threat to Russian national security. The report highlights the example of Russia’s use of force in Ukraine to demonstrate this behavior.
The report from the US Intelligence Community stated that Russia has utilized food as a tool of aggression, which involved preventing or taking control of Ukrainian ports, demolishing grain infrastructure, occupying vast areas of agricultural land, leading to reduced yields, and displacing workers. Moreover, they have taken grain for future exports, causing a further shortage of food worldwide and escalating the prices.
(With inputs from ANI)
Download The Mint News App to get Daily Market Updates.
More
Less
For all the latest world News Click Here
