According to US intelligence, the Kremlin leader may try to expand the fighting further into Europe.<\/p>\n
He would need to do so to break the deadlock in the war against Ukraine.<\/p>\n
These assessments come amid concerns over shortages of certain critical munitions that the United States would need in the event of a potential military confrontation with Russia or China.<\/p>\n
US intelligence warns that Putin may indeed intensify aggressive actions against Kyiv”s European allies.<\/p>\n
The range of possible actions by the Russian leader is quite broad, from cyberattacks and localized provocations to a limited ground invasion.<\/p>\n
It is also possible that the Kremlin leader could resort to even more dangerous steps if he finds himself in a desperate situation.<\/p>\n
Although the likelihood of the most extreme scenario \u2014 a limited Russian ground invasion of a NATO country \u2014 is currently assessed as low, analysts believe it is gradually increasing.<\/p>\n
Until now, such a scenario had been considered highly unlikely because it would trigger Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty, which provides for the collective defense of the Alliance’s member states.<\/p>\n
Recently, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk predicted that Russia could attack a NATO country within months rather than years. At the same time, most intelligence agencies in NATO member states believe this could happen within the next few years.<\/p>\n
Lithuanian intelligence recently warned about a new Russian plan<\/a> involving Ukraine and the Baltic states.<\/p>\n In addition, Polish Foreign Minister Rados\u0142aw Sikorski explained what to expect next from Putin in light of his setbacks in Ukraine<\/a>.<\/p>\n