NEW YORK: Nearly a year into an invasion that was supposed to take weeks, Russia's President Vladimir Putin is preparing a new offensive in Ukraine, at the same time steeling his country for a conflict with the United States and its allies that he expects to last for years.
The Kremlin aims to demonstrate that its forces can regain the initiative after months of losing ground, putting pressure on Kyiv and its backers to agree to some kind of truce that leaves Russia in control of the territory it now occupies, according to officials, advisers and others familiar with the situation.
