The Kremlin continues to bet on achieving maximum advance deep into Ukrainian territory, Oleh Luhovskyi, First Deputy Head of Ukraine’s Foreign Intelligence Service, said in an interview with Ukrinform.
According to him, the Kremlin’s position on seizing Ukraine’s Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson regions has not changed. In the near term, the Kremlin does not plan to revise its strategic objectives on the Ukrainian front and, accordingly, its vision for ending the war.
“The Kremlin continues to bet on maximum advance deep into Ukrainian territory. It believes in the possibility of a collapse of both the front line and the rear,” Luhovskyi said.
He added that when it comes to territory, Russia sets no limits and aims to advance as far as circumstances allow. At the same time, the Kremlin believes this will strengthen its negotiating position.
The First Deputy Head of the Foreign Intelligence Service recalled that ahead of the New Year, Putin publicly tasked the military command not only with advancing toward Zaporizhzhia, but also with continuing offensives in the Sumy and Kharkiv regions under the pretext of expanding a so-called “security zone.”
The Kremlin рассчитывает that strikes on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure at the height of winter, combined with battlefield advantages, will have a cumulative effect and force Ukraine to capitulate.