Reuters reported that, according to US intelligence, russian president vladimir putin has not abandoned his plans to completely seize Ukraine and his desire to return to moscow's control some of the European territories that were formerly part of the USSR. These conclusions, according to journalists, are in stark contrast to the statements of US President Donald Trump and his entourage about the kremlin's alleged readiness to end the war.
This is said in a statement by the Director of National Intelligence of the United States Tulsi Gabbard.
A Reuters report says that such estimates also do not coincide with putin's own public assurances that russia does not pose a threat to Europe. The agency cites six sources familiar with the content of US intelligence reports and notes that these conclusions have remained unchanged since the start of russia's full-scale invasion in 2022. According to the interlocutors, European politicians and intelligence services share a similar position.
"The intelligence has always been that Putin wants more. The Europeans are convinced of it. The Poles are absolutely convinced of it. The Baltics think they're first," Mike Quigley, a Democratic member of the House Intelligence Committee, said in a Reuters interview.
One of the agency's sources clarified that the most recent intelligence report is dated the end of September.
After the publication of the Reuters article, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard sharply criticized it. In a post on social network X, she called the article "lie and propaganda," which, according to her, is aimed at disrupting Donald Trump's peace initiatives.
"Dangerously, you are promoting this false narrative to block President Trump’s peace effort, and fomenting hysteria and fear among the people to get them to support the escalation of war, which is what NATO and the EU really want in order to pull the United States military directly into war with Russia," she said.
Gabbard said lawmakers, including a Democrat quoted by Reuters, were actually told different estimates. According to them, russia, according to US intelligence, "seeks to avoid a larger war with NATO." In addition, the reports cited by the head of the National Intelligence Service state that russia does not currently have the capabilities to fully conquer and occupy Ukraine, let alone European countries.
On December 15, US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff reported achieving significant progress following the talks in Berlin between American and Ukrainian representatives.
In particular, Zelenskyy told reporters that Ukraine was ready to refuse to join NATO in exchange for legally binding security guarantees from the United States, similar to NATO's Article 5, as well as from European countries. He added that "this is already a compromise on our part."
Meanwhile, Zelenskyy said that he does not know what the terms will be of security guarantees for Ukraine under the peace agreement. At the same time, he emphasized that Ukraine seeks to receive guarantees similar to NATO Article 5.
At the same time, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov made a loud statement, claiming that during recent contacts with the United States over Ukraine, Washington allegedly agreed to support moscow's territorial claims and exclude Kyiv's accession to NATO.
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