The Department of Defense is now unclear on what Russia’s long-term objectives are in Ukraine, nearly a month into the Kremlin’s largely unsuccessful incursion.
“We are not exactly clear what their endgame is now,” Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said in a Tuesday morning interview on Fox & Friends.
Russian forces “only have two population centers that they have actually taken” through the first 27 days of the war, he added during another interview Tuesday morning with CNN. “They have not been able to take any others. They are slowed.”
US HAS NO KNOWLEDGE OF ACTIVITIES AT UKRAINIAN BIOLABS ONCE SEIZED BY RUSSIA: OFFICIALS
They sought to capture the capital, Kyiv, and topple the government quickly, but they remain on the outskirts of the city, miles away, and are losing ground in some surrounding suburbs. The Ukrainian forces’ resistance has played a large role in the Russians’ “stalled” progress.
The Russians have bombed various places throughout the country, turning once-thriving cities into hollow shells with mass graves, scattered debris, bombed-out buildings, and collapsed structures. Thousands have died, and millions have been forced out of their homes, fleeing to nearby countries.
With the Russians’ efforts continuing to stall, it appears as though they have opted to try to bomb Ukraine into submission, and that includes the launching of attacks and missiles with disregard for civilian life. But with the Ukrainians’ resistance holding steady, Russia’s “indiscriminate bombardment” could be “a prelude of even more violent attacks,” Kirby added.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, said last Thursday that “we’ve seen most recently appear to be focused directly on civilians,” while Kirby announced on Monday that they “certainly see clear evidence that Russian forces are committing war crimes and we are helping with the collecting of evidence of that, but there’s investigative processes that are going to go on and we’re going to let that happen.”
President Joe Biden, who called Russian President Vladimir Putin a “war criminal” last week, warned Monday that the Russian leader is considering using biological and chemical weapons.
“Now he’s talking about new false flags he’s setting up, including asserting that we in America have biological as well as chemical weapons in Europe, simply not true,” Biden said. “They are also suggesting that Ukraine has biological and chemical weapons in Ukraine. That’s a clear sign he’s considering using both of those.”
Russian troops have faced their own problems, in addition to experiencing a more advanced resistance than expected. There have been reports from the Pentagon that some Russians have willingly surrendered while some others have sabotaged their vehicles. The Pentagon has told reporters that some of the soldiers are conscripts.
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A senior U.S. defense official told reporters last Thursday that the U.S. is seeing “anecdotal indications” that Russian forces’ morale is flagging, but warned it could not be verified if it was widespread. Some of the decreased confidence of the forces can be attributed to “a function of poor leadership” and a “lack of information that the troops are getting about their mission and objectives,” the official added. “I think disillusionment from being resisted as fiercely as they have been” has also been a factor.
Since the invasion began, more than 3 million people have fled from Ukraine, while nearly a thousand people have died and more than 1,500 have been wounded, according to the United Nations, though it warns the numbers are likely “considerably higher.”
