The US has intelligence that Russia may have delayed announcing its withdrawal from Kherson to avoid a political victory for the Joe Biden administration in the midterm elections.
This is reported by CNN.
An intelligence official noted that senior Russian officials considered the US midterm elections as one factor when discussing the withdrawal announcement. Another person familiar with the intelligence reported that waiting for the elections in the US was a "pre-planned condition" for Russia's withdrawal from Kherson.
However, the election was far from the only factor behind Russia's retreat. Military analysts believe that the Russian Federation had few other operational options and had been preparing to withdraw for weeks.
CNN writes that while the intelligence data is not an official assessment of Russia's intentions, it is a sign that the aggressor country continues to have an interest in influencing the US political landscape. At the same time, the sources note that Russia probably miscalculated the impact of the announcement of the withdrawal from Kherson on the elections.
"I doubt the Americans would really notice," said another source familiar with Western intelligence.
Note that Biden previously hinted that the US believed that the timing of Russia's announcement was more than just a coincidence.
"I think it's interesting that they waited until after the election to announce a decision that we've known about for some time, and it shows that they have a real problem -- the Russian military," he said.
Intelligence also suggests that Russia is betting that the Republican-led US will provide less support to Ukraine.
Russian operatives have also used far-right media platforms to smear Democratic candidates in several states, according to private investigators.
Nevertheless, numerous US and congressional officials say that if Russia did decide to time its official exit from Kherson before the US midterm elections, it likely overestimated the importance of some of the fighting in Ukraine to Americans. According to the sources, this indicates insufficient thinking of Russian information operations.