December 09, 2022

The Ruse That Could Dupe Putin Into Another Crushing Ambush

Source: Daily Beast

Journalist: Shannon Vavra

In apparent anticipation of a Ukrainian campaign, Russian troops have been working to establish outposts and trenches near the Crimean border and in Donetsk and Luhansk, according to the Associated Press.

Though it’s impossible to predict the next move for certain, Ukrainian forces may very well be working to surprise again, Jim Townsend, the former deputy assistant secretary of defense (DASD) for European and NATO policy, told The Daily Beast.

“They’re very clever people and that’s one of the reasons that they’re doing so well is that they’re unpredictable,” Townsend said, suggesting that the Ukrainians could be leaning on spreading some misinformation to “mislead” the Russians. “Ukraine keeps us guessing. And that's great because it means they’re keeping the Russians guessing too.”

Read the full story and more from The Daily Beast.

Author

  • Jim Townsend

    Adjunct Senior Fellow, Transatlantic Security Program

    James Joye Townsend Jr. is an adjunct senior fellow in the CNAS Transatlantic Security Program. After eight years as Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense (DASD) for European ...