Directions: In the following passage, some words have been deleted. Select the most appropriate option to fill in each blank.

Russia has ___(1)___ several setbacks in its invasion of Ukraine. It started a three-front war but was met with ___(2)___ Ukrainian resistance in the north and east. Later, Russia gave up its attempts to envelop Kyiv on the northern front and, at least for now, ___(3)___ from Kharkiv, the northeastern city. Its battleground focus is now almost entirely on the Donbas region where Russian troops are making ___(4)___ advances. Now, with Mariupol under its ___(5)___, Russia can free up resources to move to its next target, which suggests that the war could grind on. The tragedy of Ukraine is that it has got stuck in a larger power ___(6)___ between the West and Russia. Despite the West’s massive financial and military support, Ukraine keeps ___(7)___ territories. On the other side, even as Russia is making slow battleground gains in Ukraine, it is ___(8)___ bigger setbacks. The invasion has already ___(9)___ Finland and Sweden, which have historically stayed out of military alliances, to formally seek NATO membership. So, in less than three months since the invasion began, there are no clear winners — Ukraine is losing territories, Russia is witnessing another round of NATO’s enlargement, and Europe, ___(10)___ by inflation and an energy crisis, is likely to be facing prolonged instability and conflicts.