Russia & Putin playing the long game in Ukraine: if they can keep the war grinding in the Donbas into the winter, can Putin outlast the Ukrainians, NATO and the West?
The Russians hoped to pull off a lightening strike on Kyiv and rule most of Ukraine within weeks, when it launched the invasion of its neighbor back in February.
And in the weeks afterwards when Russian forces were forced to retreat from the capital, Ukrainians hoped they had Russians on the run.
Four months later and the war in Ukraine could last well beyond anyone's expectations. NATO's Secretary General says Russia's war in Ukraine could go on for years and the effort requires sustained Western support during that time.
This comes as Ukraine's deputy defense minister says Russia has ordered its military to overrun the entire eastern Donbas region by next Sunday. That territory could prove difficult for Ukraine to win back once the Russians have dug in with defenses.
And yet the Ukrainian government and military stands by its goals in this war: win back every square inch of Ukrainian territory taken by Russian, including Crimea.
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