Russia likely to shift tactics, send thousands of soldiers to eastern Ukraine, U.S. says

Sullivan said the Biden administration would announce fresh military assistance for Ukraine in the coming days and stressed that further sanctions against Russian energy are also on the table in talks with European allies. Russian President Vladimir Putin's invasion in Ukraine, which began on Feb. 24, is Europe's bloodiest since World War Two. Russia calls it a "special military operation" aimed at protecting civilians.

Russia probably plans to "deploy tens of thousands of soldiers" to eastern Ukraine as it shifts its focus to the country's south and east, U.S. President Joe Biden's national security adviser Jake Sullivan said on Monday.

“At this juncture we believe Russia is revising its war aims” to focus on “eastern and parts of southern Ukraine rather than target most of the territory," Sullivan told reporters at the White House. Sullivan said the Biden administration would announce fresh military assistance for Ukraine in the coming days and stressed that further sanctions against Russian energy are also on the table in talks with European allies.

Russian President Vladimir Putin's invasion in Ukraine, which began on Feb. 24, is Europe's bloodiest since World War Two. Russia calls it a "special military operation" aimed at protecting civilians. Sullivan warned the next phase may be protracted with Russian troops outnumbering Ukraine's. He described as tragic and shocking images that emerging from Bucha, a town recently recaptured by Ukrainian troops as Russian forces regroup.

Biden on Monday accused Putin of war crimes and called for a trial, adding to the global outcry over civilian killings in Bucha as more graphic images of their deaths emerge. The Kremlin categorically denied any accusations related to the murder of civilians, including in Bucha, where it said the graves and corpses had been staged by Ukraine to tarnish Russia.