Ukraine war corrosive for Vladimir Putin - CIA boss

The Ukraine warfare is having a "corrosive" effect connected Vladimir Putin's enactment of Russia, according to the caput of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).

Russian disaffection implicit the warfare is providing caller opportunities for the CIA to cod intelligence, the agency's Director William J Burns said.

America's apical spy made the comments portion delivering the yearly lecture astatine the Ditchley Foundation successful the UK.

He was speaking a week aft the mutiny by Wagner brag Yevgeny Prigozhin.

Mr Burns said everyone had been "riveted" by the scenes past Saturday of Prigozhin's "armed challenge" to Moscow, erstwhile his Wagner mercenary forces marched towards Russia's capital.

Prigozhin's actions were "a vivid reminder of the corrosive effect of Putin's warfare connected his ain nine and his ain regime", helium said.

The CIA manager said the interaction not conscionable of Prigozhin's actions but besides his statements - which included an indictment of some the rationale and execution of Russia's penetration - would play retired for immoderate time.

"Disaffection with the warfare volition proceed to gnaw distant astatine the Russian leadership," Mr Burns said successful his prepared remarks.

"That disaffection creates a erstwhile successful a procreation accidental for america astatine CIA," referring to the relation of the bureau successful recruiting quality agents to supply intelligence.

"We are not letting it spell to waste," helium said to laughter from the audience. "We are precise overmuch unfastened for business."

The CIA has precocious launched a caller societal media run to effort and scope radical successful Russia, including a video posted to the Telegram societal media site, which is wide utilized by Russians. The run provided instructions connected however to interaction the CIA connected the acheronian web without being monitored.

This video gained 2.5 cardinal views successful the archetypal week.

Director Burns besides reiterated the connection different US officials person antecedently made successful nationalist that the US had nary portion successful Prigozhin's mutiny.

He did not straight code caller reports successful the Washington Post that helium made a concealed sojourn to the Ukrainian superior earlier the mutiny.

It was reported that discussions included the anticipation that advancement successful Ukraine's counter-offensive mightiness unfastened the mode for negotiations from a presumption of greater spot if important territory was taken.

Mr Burns - who antecedently served arsenic the US Ambassador to Russia from 2005 to 2008 - said spending overmuch of the past 2 decades trying to recognize Russian President Putin had fixed him a "healthy dose of humility astir pontificating astir Putin and Russia".

But helium added that 1 happening that helium had learnt was that it was ever a mistake to underestimate Mr Putin's fixation connected controlling Ukraine.

The Russian person believed that without Ukraine, Russia could not beryllium a large powerfulness and Mr Putin himself could not beryllium a large leader, helium said.

"That tragic and brutish fixation has already brought shame to Russia and exposed its weaknesses," Mr Burns said.

"Putin's warfare has already been a strategical nonaccomplishment for Russia: its subject weaknesses laid bare, its system severely damaged for years to come, its aboriginal arsenic a inferior spouse and economical colony of China being shaped by Putin's mistakes."

Turning to China, the CIA brag said it would beryllium foolish for the US to effort to decouple due to the fact that of the heavy economical interdependence betwixt the 2 countries.

"China is the lone state with some the intent to reshape the planetary bid and progressively the economic, diplomatic, subject and technological powerfulness to bash so," helium said.

The US should alternatively "sensibly de-risk and diversify by securing resilient proviso chains, protecting our technological borderline and investing successful concern capacity", helium added.