American officials: Despite Ukrainian resistance, the dark days are coming.

Despite Russia facing stronger resistance than expected and logistical obstacles during its first week of military offensive in Ukraine, American and European officials warn that the darkest days of the occupation are ahead.

As it prepares for the worst that will happen in Ukraine in the coming days and weeks, the administration of President Joe Biden is discussing within the country possible sanctions on Russia's energy sector in response, current officials and former American officials said.

These discussions include reviewing possible ways to structure such sanctions to avoid targeting daily oil sales, and instead aim at future production and investments in Russia's energy industry.

We don't have a strategic interest in reducing global energy supply. This would increase prices on the gas pump for Americans and lower Putin's profits. But we and our allies and partners share a strong interest in degrading Russia's status as a major energy supplier over the passage of”, an administration official said.

However, excluding some unexpected developments, American and European officials said they see no possibility for any diplomatic resolution to avoid what they expect to be a brutal attack on key parts of the country.

The only way to do that would be if Russian President Vladimir Putin decided to de-traditionate by agreeing to a ceasefire and starting to leave Ukraine, an American official said, adding that “has no indication Putin is willing to make any at this point. ”

A senior Western intelligence official said the Russians appeared to have realised their initial approach was wrong and are changing tactics.

Pentagon Press Secretary John Kirby seemed to echo that sentiment Wednesday, saying Russian forces are regrouping and reevaluating their strategy.

The number of refugees will increase, the number of civilian victims and dead civilians will increase. The cruel military mathematics of this will eventually occur in the absence of an intervention, in the absence of any substantial change in dynamics,” envisions the Western intelligence official.

Officials expect Russia to overthrow the Ukrainian government and predict there will be a civil and armed resistance.

Ed Ferguson, an adviser to the British Defence Minister, said that once Putin takes over parts of Ukraine, he will face a uprising.

The administration has pledged to escalate sanctions against Russia as Putin escalates military action in Ukraine, and has done so steadily over the past week.

President Beden and other senior administration officials, however, have stressed that the goal is to adapt sanctions so that they can have a maximum impact on Russia, while trying to downplay any consequences for US and European economies.

For example, when they sanctioned Russia's approach to the SW banking system The IFT, the US and Europe structured the measure in order to leave banks available to facilitate payments for oil sales.

While some republican lawmakers are calling for sanctions targeting Russia's oil and gas, the Democrats in Congress are careful of any direct action against Russian oil sales that could trigger a massive increase in oil prices, but remain open to ideas that would expand the domestic energy production, Congress aides said.

The U.S. and, the more, Europe relies on Russian oil. This week the Biden administration announced it would release 30 million barrels of oil from the Oil Strategic Reserve in an effort to address the rise in gas prices.

“We are looking at other options we can now take to reduce American Russian energy consumption ʹ but in the context of maintaining a sustainable global energy supply”, the administration official said.

In the background, American officials have told their allies outside the administration that the situation in Ukraine will become a lot of ugly “”, as one of them said. Another said officials have increasingly given the sense of lack of “at the end of the” tunnel.

These officials say the Russians are likely to expand the methods they have used in recent days: Targeting urban areas and causing more damage to buildings and civilian countries.

Promoting terrible predictions is the Western assessment that Russia is not backing back, but is doubling in the face of Ukrainian resistance.

The Western intelligence official noted that in the early days of the occupation, Russia used lighter military units that were too mobile. But now, the official said that “concern is that they seem to be bringing stronger forces, more long-range artillery, heavier weapons, which are not only more destructive, but are also less accurate”, broadcast NBC News.