Ex-CIA Chief of Station: How should the US handle Russian aggression? Here are four things that need to happen

Russian President Vladimir Putin has made clear by his actions that his chief foreign policy goals are to destabilize the U.S. internally, drive a wedge between America and our NATO allies, and enhance his influence in neighboring countries.

Ukraine is now feeling the brunt of Putin’s aggression – but it’s far from the only victim. And no one outside the Kremlin knows where Putin may strike next.

Putin’s national security strategy sees the U.S. as Russia’s glavniy protivnik – meaning “main enemy.” The Russian State Security Service (FSB), Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) and Military Intelligence (GRU) still focus the lion’s share of their resources on penetrating America’s national security agencies, political parties, defense industry and special interest groups.

Right now Russia is acting more like an aggressive and dangerous rogue nation than a member of the community of nations. Under Putin, the nation is relentlessly focused on crippling and exploiting the global order, which is so vital to U.S. national security and economic growth.

While Ukraine is currently the chief target of Russian intervention, the U.S. has not been spared.