Why Russia Hasn’t Defeated Ukraine

After invading, Russia’s military was expected to sweep through Ukraine within a few days, quickly seizing the capital, Kyiv, and installing a pro-Moscow government.It hasn’t worked out that way.Now, with Russia’s advance stalling, there are signs that President Vladimir V. Putin is ready to wage a much darker, grimmer campaign.Guest: Eric Schmitt, a senior writer covering terrorism and national security for The New York Times. Background reading: After days of miscalculation about Ukraine’s resolve to fight, Russian forces are turning toward an old pattern of opening fire on cities and mounting sieges.Plagued by poor morale as well as fuel and food shortages, some Russian troops in Ukraine have surrendered en masse or sabotaged their own vehicles to avoid fighting, a Pentagon official said.Want more from The Daily? For one big idea on the news each week from our team, subscribe to our newsletter. For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.  Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.