Russia can fund war in Ukraine for at least another year despite sanctions – leaked Pentagon documents

Russia will be able to finance the war against Ukraine for at least another year, despite the sanctions.

Source: The Washington Post citing leaked documents of US intelligence posted on Discord 

Details: The media specified that this information was stated in the documents of "the highest level of classification" labelled top secret. According to them, American intelligence believes that Russia can fund war in Ukraine for another year despite sanctions. 

While not all of Russia’s economic elites agree with the course of action taken in Ukraine, and their business suffered because of sanctions, they are "unlikely to withdraw support" for Russian President Vladimir Putin, an assessment presumably made in early March reads.

Quote from the intelligence: "Moscow is relying on increased corporate taxes, its sovereign wealth fund, increased imports and businesses adaptability to help mitigate economic pressures."

More details: WP emphasises that the document does not take into account the impact of newly imposed sanctions, nor the long-term consequences of oil price ceilings being established in Europe. The assessment does not address other factors possibly affecting Russia’s ability to fight, such as munitions costs and the need to recruit or conscript new soldiers.

The Treasury Department declined to comment on the documents in question, the news outlet writes. The White House did not respond to questions about them.

Apart from that, WP states that leaked documents also provide a window into the consternation they have caused among some of their intended targets.

Quote from WP: "While the documents do not include in-depth discussion of their sources, they are marked with a code indicating the data was gleaned from intercepted communications. That suggests that the United States has gained access to the channels where Russian figures privately discuss how to limit the impact of sanctions."

More details: According to US intelligence, Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov had drafted a letter to Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin in early March with a request to support the plans for possible emergencies, meant to help "avoid a ‘potentially embarrassing collapse’ of Russian state-controlled entities such as the International Investment Bank, the International Bank for Economic Cooperation and the Eurasian Investment Bank, because of sanctions imposed by the United States and its allies".

According to another document, US intelligence found that Russia’s top intelligence officials from the Federal Security Service (FSB) were concerned about the insufficient amount of foreign currency held by domestic Russian banks, the Washington Post writes.

Quote from WP: "The previously unreported documents provide a rare glimpse into Washington’s understanding of the effectiveness of its own economic measures, and of the tenor of the response they have met in Russia, where U.S. intelligence finds that senior officials, agencies and the staff of oligarchs are fretting over the painful disruptions – and adapting to them."

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