WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines said on Tuesday that Russian President Vladimir Putin is unlikely to be deterred and may escalate the assault on Ukraine, despite setbacks in Ukraine and economic hardships resulting from international sanctions.
“Our analysts assess that Putin is unlikely to be deterred by such setbacks and instead may escalate,” she told a House of Representatives hearing on global threats.
(Reporting by Jonathan Landay, Doina Chiacu and Patricia Zengerle)
