CIA chief says Ukraine war has turned Russia into China's economic satellite

• The Russia-Ukraine war has caused multiple setbacks for Vladimir Putin, says CIA chief William Burns.
• Burns said in an op-ed for Foreign affairs The war “proved to be foolish and illusory” for Putin.
• Burns said the invasion weakened the Russian army and economy.

Russia's invasion of Ukraine has crippled its economy and left it beholden to China, says CIA Director William J. Burns.

“The Russian economy is suffering from long-term setbacks, and the country is resolving its fate as an economic dependency on China,” Burns wrote in an opinion article in the newspaper. Foreign affairs Tuesday.

Russia has been struggling under crippling economic sanctions imposed by the West since it invaded Ukraine in February 2022. But relations between Russia and China have deepened, with bilateral trade reaching a record level of $240 billion in 2023, per Chinese customs data.

“Putin’s war has already been a failure for Russia on many levels,” Burns wrote in his article. “His original goal of seizing Kiev and subjugating Ukraine has proven foolish and delusional.”

Burns said the Ukraine war had caused “huge damage” to the Russian army.

“At least 315,000 Russian soldiers were killed or wounded, two-thirds of Russia's pre-war tank stock was destroyed, and Putin's vaunted decades-long military modernization program was hollowed out,” Burns wrote in his op-ed.

Russia's military and economic setbacks also led to it turning to countries such as North Korea and Iran for munitions.

“Putin’s overblown ambitions have backfired in another way as well: they have pushed NATO to grow bigger and stronger,” Burns said in his article.

The military alliance has seen its ranks grow in the past year, with Finland joining in April. Sweden's application for NATO membership It received the approval of all members except Hungary.

British Defense Secretary Grant Shapps earlier this month echoed Burns's damning assessment of Putin and Russia.

“The world has turned its back on Russia, forcing Putin to the humiliation of turning to North Korea to continue his illegal invasion,” Grant Shapps wrote in an article. Share X On January 5th.

Representatives for Burns did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider sent outside regular business hours.