Humiliated by lightning Ukrainian gains on the battlefield, Russian President Vladimir Putin faces narrowing options as he seeks to turn the tide in his struggling nearly seven-month-old invasion.
Criticism in Russia of the sudden retreat in the northeast Kharkiv region over the last week has spread from nationalist bloggers to mainstream political figures. But its forces are still holding key positions in Ukraine’s Donbas region and putting up a fierce fight against its troops near Kherson in the south. There are signs the Kremlin may also be redeploying forces to protect Crimea, which Russia annexed as the main prize of its 2014 campaign, in the event Ukraine is able to break through its lines.
In the Kremlin, the shock at the sudden and striking battlefield reversals is increasingly giving way to a grim resignation and a determination to continue escalating the fight, stepping up strikes on Ukraine’s infrastructure deep behind the lines, according to people familiar with the situation who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss confidential matters.
