The US intelligence assessment describes a number of possible Russian responses, ranging from increased sabotage in Europe, such as arson, to attacks on US and European military bases, where there may be casualties.
United States officials believe that the Russian military intelligence agency GRU is behind most of the recent acts of sabotage in Europe.
If Ukraine is allowed to use Western long-range weapons to attack Russian territory, Moscow will continue to operate covertly and not launch open attacks on US and European targets to reduce the risk of a wider conflict, the sources admit.
Russian dictator Vladimir Putin’s rhetoric has been “particularly belligerent” in the run-up to the decision to lift the embargo on strikes on Russian territory, the newspaper said.
According to some of US President Joe Biden’s top advisers, if the decision is in Ukraine’s favor, Putin is likely to use lethal force.
According to the newspaper’s interlocutors, it is not clear what decision Biden will make.
US intelligence agencies doubt that if the Ukrainians are allowed to use long-range missiles, the Ukrainian military will have enough weapons to radically change the course of the conflict.
Ukraine has a limited number of missiles and it is unclear how many more weapons its allies will be able to provide, according to the intelligence service.
After the first strikes, Russian forces are likely to move ammunition depots, command posts, attack helicopters and other facilities out of range of the missiles, the intelligence service predicts.
2024-09-29 00:19:33