According to the ISW, people in Putin’s inner circle want the President to ramp up the ambitions for the war.
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According to the ISW, people in Putin’s inner circle want the President to ramp up the ambitions for the war.
What is happening?

Russian President, Vladimir Putin, has repeatedly maintained his demands of Ukraine leaving the Eastern Ukrainian regions of Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizjzja and Kherson if a ceasefire-deal is to be made.
Why those four regions?

Russia has annexed the four regions, meaning they are now considered Russian territory according to Russia.
Russian forces still do not have full control of either of the regions, though.
Also read
Putin under pressure

According to the Institute for the Study of War (ISW), some people close to Putin want him to expand Russian territorial ambitions in Ukraine.
125,000 troops deployed near borders

According to the ISW, Washington Post has reported that Ukrainian military intelligence warns that Russia has deployed 125,000 troops near the border of the Sumy and Kharkiv regions – both sharing a border with Russia to the Northeast.
Don’t stop with the East

While the Kremlin repeat the official ambitions of gaining complete control of the East of Ukraine, intelligence suggest that people close to Putin want Russia to take control of most of Ukraine as a whole.
New annexation coming?

According to the ISW, Russia has already conducted offensive operations in the buffer zone of Kharkiv and Sumy – most likely to set the conditions for further illegal annexations of at least Sumy.