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US intelligence expects hostilities in Ukraine to develop at a slower pace over the next few months.

It also sees no evidence of a break in Ukraine's will to resist despite Russian attacks on energy and other critical infrastructure amid the coming winter.

This was said by the Director of National Intelligence of the USA, Avril Haynes, quoted by Reuters.

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She spoke at the annual Reagan National Defense Forum in Simi Valley, California.

The Pentagon chief accused Russia of "deliberate cruelty" in Ukraine

"We are already seeing a sort of slowdown in the pace of the conflict ... and we expect that will likely continue in the coming months," Avril Haynes said.

She predicted that both the Ukrainian and Russian armies would try to re-equip and replenish their supplies to prepare for a counter-offensive after winter ends.

At this stage, Haynes thinks Ukraine is more likely to prepare better than Russia during this period.

According to the director of US National Intelligence, Russian President Vladimir Putin was surprised that his country's armed forces did not achieve more after its invasion of Ukraine, but his political goals for the neighboring country have not changed.

As for the United States' other major geopolitical rival, China, Avril Haynes said President Xi Jinping does not want to accept Western vaccines against COVID-19 despite challenges with the novel coronavirus disease.

The recent protests against strict containment measures due to the infection are not a threat to the Chinese Communist Party's power, but may affect the situation of Xi himself, she concluded.

Although new cases of the coronavirus in China are near record levels, some cities are loosening restrictions after the "zero covid" policy significantly slowed economic growth and sparked public discontent, Reuters noted.

Haynes predicted that Xi will not accept Western vaccines, as it is a matter of "national pride", adds BTA.

Russian invasion of Ukraine