Bear trap: Russia is running out of good options in Ukraine

Russia's ongoing invasion of Ukraine has reached a critical juncture, with Moscow facing limited options. Despite maintaining control over a significant portion of Ukrainian territory and possessing a substantial advantage in population and resources, Russia's progress has stalled. Ukrainian forces have launched targeted attacks on Russian logistics hubs, including warehouses belonging to Wildberries and Ozon, Russia's largest and second-largest online retailers, respectively. These strikes aim to disrupt supplies to Russian soldiers and exert pressure on ordinary Russians.

The UK and France have pledged support to Ukraine, with Britain agreeing to provide Kyiv with access to classified technology for producing Storm Shadow long-range cruise missiles. Russia has responded by threatening to strike military targets within and outside Ukraine. According to a report, CIA chief John Ratcliffe visited Moscow, warning the Kremlin against attacking NATO, amid concerns of a potential Russian assault on an allied country.

The war, now in its fourth year, shows no signs of a swift resolution. Vladimir Putin has tied his legacy to the invasion, making it challenging for him to consider withdrawing troops. As the conflict drags on, pressures on Putin to seek an exit strategy are expected to grow, but he has given no indication of wanting to end the war.

Brief written by urgent.news from Asia Times, People Daily Kenya, The Conversation AU — 3 reports on this story. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.