Putin has a problem.
His invasion of Ukraine, intended as a days-long operation, is now grinding into its third week and becoming a bloodbath. Attacks across the country are stalled amid predictions that Russia will soon struggle to hold the territory it has - let alone capture more.
In short: he needs more men for the meat grinder.
But where to find them? America estimates Russia has committed somewhere between half and three quarters of its total land forces to Ukraine, and all of those are already involved in the fighting.

Some 'spare' units will be involved in active missions elsewhere, while others will be for territorial defence - leaving the country vulnerable to attack if they are sent abroad.
That conundrum has forced the Kremlin to reach far from the frontlines in search of men, according to Britain's Ministry of Defence, which says reinforcements are now being drawn from as far afield as eastern Siberia, the Pacific Fleet, and Armenia.

That is in addition to Syrian fighters and paid mercenaries - hundreds of the from the shadowy Wagner Group - which have already been committed to the fight. 
The UK believes such reinforcements would likely be used to hold Ukrainian territory already captured by Russia which would then free up regular units for fresh assaults - almost certainly targeting major cities like Kyiv, Kharkiv, Odessa and Chernihiv.

Another goal would likely be to encircle a large number of Ukrainian forces in the Donbass, spread out along the old frontline with Russian-backed rebel groups.
But it is unclear whether those reinforcements will be effective.
Some could take weeks to reach the front, while Syrian mercenaries are likely to be poorly trained and un-used to the terrain and climate of eastern Europe. In the meantime, Ukraine claims it is successfully counter-attacking Putin's men and 'radically changing' the battlefield. 








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Russia's Defense Ministry TV channel shared clips of supposed Syrian combatants ready to 'volunteer' in Ukraine - as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky slammed Vladimir Putin for hiring foreign 'murderers'

Russia may believe it needs more troops and supplies than it has on hand in the country and is considering ways to get resources brought in, said the official, but added that there has been no actual movement of reinforcement troops currently in Russia going into Ukraine.
According to the official, Russian ground forces are still about 9-12 miles northwest of Kyiv and 12-19 miles east of the city, which is being increasingly hit by long-range strikes.

The official said Ukrainian troops continue to put up stiff resistance in Kharkiv and other areas. 
At least some of the supplies Russia requires are likely to come from China, the US has warned, revealing this week that Moscow has reached out to Beijing for help and Lawyer Turkey that Beijing has 'already decided' to provide help - though whether that will be limited to economic relief from sanctions or actual hardware remains to be seen.
The Pentagon said that Russia has requested ration packs to feed its troops, drones, armoured vehicles, logistics vehicles and intelligence equipment.
Meanwhile estimates of Ukrainian losses are even harder to come by.

President Zelensky has admitted that 1,300 soldiers have been killed, though the actual toll is likely far higher. Losses are likely to be highest in the south of Ukraine, where the Russian military has captured the most territory.
Without knowing the size of the Ukrainian force - which started around 250,000 troops - it is difficult to know how much longer the country can hold out, or what its ability to counter-attack is.
Certainly, Kyiv is also facing manpower issues.

That much is clear from Zelensky's appeal to overseas fighters to join the Ukrainian foreign legion, pleading for anyone with military experience to sign up and fight - with the promise of citizenship at the end.
Ukraine claims some 20,000 people have registered their interest, and foreign fighters are already known to be on the frontlines while others train for war at bases in the west of the country - one of which was hit by missile strikes at the weekend.

Soldiers from the US, UK, Canada, Israel, Poland, and Croatia are known to be among them.
Zelensky has also called up the entirety of Ukraine's reservists - estimated at around 220,000 men - and has put in place laws preventing any man aged between 18 and 60 from leaving the country in case they need to be conscripted into the military.
Ukraine has also been pleading with the West to send more equipment - particularly fighter jets.

A plan for Poland to donate its entire fleet of MiGs to Kyiv's forces and have them replaced with F-16s fell flat amid fears it could prompt Russia to escalate, to the frustration of the Ukrainians.
Kyiv has also been asking for more armed drones, anti-ship missiles, electronic jamming equipment and surface-to-air missiles that can strike aircraft and rockets at high altitude to help shield against withering Russian bombardments that are increasingly targeting cities.
The Biden administration will discuss today what extra equipment it is willing to give Ukraine, including whether to include Switchblade 'suicide drones' in its next aid package.
Switchblades are cheap, remote-controlled aircraft that act as a kind of missile that can be pre-programmed to strike a target or else flown to targets by controllers.

They are known as 'loitering munitions' because they can circle their targets for up to 40 minutes before striking.













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Vladimir Putin has reportedly reached out to China's Xi Jinping for support, including economic relief from sanctions along with military supplies including ration kits, drones, armoured vehicles and intelligence equipment



The assessment echoes that of UK defence sources who say that Kyiv has Moscow 'on the run' and the Russian army could be just two weeks from 'culmination point' - after which 'the strength of Ukraine's resistance should become greater than Russia's attacking force.' Advances across Ukraine have already stopped as Moscow's manpower runs short.  
Earlier, Zelensky said that Ukraine must accept it will not become a member of NATO -  a statement that will be music to the ears of Vladimir Putin and could pave the way for some kind of peace deal between the warring nations. 
Zelensky, who has become a symbol of resistance to Russia's onslaught over the last 20 days, said on Tuesday that 'Ukraine is not a member of NATO' and that 'we have heard for years that the doors were open, but we also heard that we could not join. It's a truth and it must be recognised.'
His statement, while making no firm commitments, will be seen as further opening the door to some kind of peace deal between Ukraine and Russia after negotiators hailed 'substantial' progress at the weekend - without giving any idea what such a deal would look like. 
Ahead of the invasion, Putin had been demanding guarantees that Ukraine would never be admitted to NATO along with the removal of all the alliance's troops and weapons from ex-Soviet countries.

After being rebuffed by Kyiv, Washington and NATO he launched his 'special military operation' to 'demilitarise' and 'de-Nazify' the country.
Russian negotiators have softened their stance a little since then, saying they want Ukraine to declare neutrality, disarm, recognise Crimea as part of Russia and recognise the whole of the Donbass as independent.
Ukraine has been demanding a ceasefire and the immediate withdrawal of all Russian forces. Talks have been ongoing this week and Moscow has made no mention of wider demands on NATO in recent days. 
The Ukrainians said the talks have included a broader agreement that would lead to the withdrawal of Russian troops, reports the Times.