Some Russian troops are surrendering to Ukrainian forces without a fight as morale drops, US defense official says

• Some Russian troops have been surrendering to Ukrainian forces "without a fight," a US defense official told reporters.
• The senior official said the Russian military appears to be "risk averse," according to CNN.

Some Russian troops have been surrendering to Ukrainian forces "without a fight" as morale drops amid Russian President Vladimir Putin's invasion of Ukraine, a US senior defense official told reporters in a briefing on Tuesday.

The US official said that there has been evidence "of a certain risk averse behavior by the Russian military," in the last six days since Russia launched its attack on the eastern European country, CNN reported.

"You've seen it on the ground, where units are surrendering, sometimes without a fight," the official said, according to the news outlet.

The official said that many among Russia's military are young draftees who have never faced combat.

"And they've got, a lot of these soldiers are conscripts, never been in combat before, some of whom we believe weren't even told they were going to be in combat," the US official said, according to CNN. "So we're just seeing evidence of a bit of risk aversion."

Russia's troops are also struggling with "fuel and sustainment" issues, the official said, adding that Russian forces have given indications that they are running out of food, CNN reported.

However, the official said that Russian troops' slowing advance on Ukraine may be for "regrouping, rethinking, reevaluating" purposes, CNN reported.

"They will regroup, they will adjust, they will change their tactics," the official said.

Additionally, the official said that Russia has launched more than 400 missiles as of Tuesday morning in its invasion of Ukraine, according to CNN.

Explosions have rocked the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv, as well as Ukraine's second-biggest city, Kharkiv, since Russia invaded the region.

Meanwhile, Russia said it will launch missile strikes in parts of the Kyiv as it urged those living near the targets to flee their homes, Russian state media reported on Tuesday.