"Something has changed inside Russia. I dont' mean Putin lost an election. Or the army mutinied.
Something quiter. And in many ways more dangerous. The system of absolute control that Vladimir Putin spend 25 years building is starting to slip out of his hands." (Inside Russia: 15 May 2026: YouTube) (my emphasis)
Russian officials on State television, in Duma hearings, Russian parliament hearings, in public speeches, have quietly stopped using collective language when they talk about the war and big political decisions what Putin makes.
It's Putin's special military operation, Putin's agenda, Putin's red lines, Putin's terms for negotiation. .... It's DISTANCING!!!" (ibid Konstantin Samoilov)
"Kyiv came under a massive aerial attack overnight into Sunday, officials said, after US and Ukrainian authorities warned of a possible incoming Russian missile strike. ... Earlier, Russian President Vladimir Putin had ordered retaliationfor a deadly Ukrainian attack. "
The attack comes after Putin accused Ukraine of a “terrorist” act, claiming that Ukrainian drones struck a college dormitory in Starobilsk, a Russian-occupied town in eastern Luhansk on Friday. The Russian president ordered the defense ministry to come up with proposals for a retaliatory response. (CNN: 24 May 2026) (my emphasis)
This 'order' of Putin comes against a backdrop of,
Russia forced to shut 400 oil wells (Konstantin Samoilov ) because of the successful and ongoing demolishing of Russia oil infrastructure
Russians banned from Europe. Visa Applications Close After MORE THAN 500,000 People Flee Russia(Joe Bloggs (left): YouTube: 23 May 2026)
Ukraine Retakes Strategic Territory: Controls Crimea Corridor. (Anna from Ukraine: 23 May 2026: YouTube)
As Ukraine escalates strikes inside Russia, the Kremlin betrays its concern with bluster about nuclear weapons and its neighbor Belarus joining the invasion. (Scott Lucas Worldview: YouTube: 24 May 2026)
And nothwistanding Xi 'fraternally' hosting Putin only days after Xi's summit with Trump, Liz Lee (left) and Ethan Wang report that,
"Moscow had signalled ahead of the visit that it was seeking further energy agreements with China, the largest buyer of Russian oil, including pipeline supplies and sea-borne shipments. … Key issues such as gas pricing remain unresolved, and analysts expect negotiations could take years. … "Russia needs this deal more urgently than China does after losing much of its European gas market, while Beijing still appears content to move slowly and preserve flexibility over future energy supply options." (Reuters: 19 May 2026) (my emphasis)
Whilst Trump's continuing announcements about a peace deal having been reached between Iran and himself, and which thus far have always been contradicted by Iranian officials, Brandon Livesay(right) now reports that,
"US President Donald Trump says an agreement with Iran has been "largely negotiated" and details will be announced soon. … "An agreement has been largely negotiated, subject to finalisation between the United States of America, the Islamic Republic of Iran, and the various other Countries, as listed," he said.
"Final aspects and details of the deal are currently being discussed, and will be announced shortly." (BBC News: 24 May 2026) (my emphasis)
'If ', and this is a BIG ' If ', a deal has been reached between Trump and Iran, and the Strait of Hormuz resumes as a safe shipping lane for oil tankers as it did BEFORE the US/Iran war, this will isolate Putin even more from Russian officials on State television, in Duma hearings, Russian parliament hearings, and in public speeches.
It also signifies an even deeper collapse of Putin's 'vertical of power', so assiduously built by himself over his 25 years in power.
Putins 'siloviki is now 'quietly and desperately' isolating themselves from him.
"Russian President Vladimir Putin said Saturday that the conflict in Ukraine is nearing its end after he oversaw a military parade on Red Square commemorating the defeat of Nazi Germany in World War II — a show that didn’t include heavy weapons for the first time in nearly two decades. … Talking to reporters later, he accused Western “globalist elites” of arming Ukraine to defeat and break up Russia and declared that “I think the matter [i.e. his war with Ukraine] is coming to an end.”(AP News: 9 May 2026) (my emphasis)
"For the first time, Saturday’s parade featured troops from North Korea, a tribute to Pyongyang that sent its soldiers to fight alongside Moscow forces to repel a Ukrainian incursion into Russia’s Kursk region." (ibid AP News)
It is interesting to note, as explained by Anna Danylchuk(left),
"Yesterday Zelensky allowed a parade to be held in Moscow. [Zelensky] published an order in which he allowed Russians to hold their parade in Moscow due to numerous humanitarian requests coming from the White House" (Anna Danylchuk: 10 May 2026: YouTube)
And on the economic front, the Military Show reveals that the Russian economy is imploding.
As they report,
"He [Putin] has ranted and raved. And just like that he gave the game away.
Even Putin admits it. It's over for Russia. Something big is breaking in the country right now as the brutal statistics show us that Russia isn't going to recover for 100 years.
The Russian economy is down the toilet. ... And the worst of it is, not even the end of the Ukraine war is going to save Russia from the financial abyss into which its leader has led the country" (The Military Show: 24 April 2026: YouTube) (my emphasis)
Trying to unravel Putin's 'crytic' statement that, "“I think the matter [i.e. his war with Ukraine] is coming to an end.", Steve Rosenberg(left) points out that a Russian newspaper wrote,
"Victory in the Special Military Operation [i.e. his war with Ukraine] that President Putin hinted on the 9th May may soon end is only possible if there is real success of [Russian] troops on the ground. It is possible these victories will have to be achieved with the help of demonstrative strikes on Ukraine with tactical nuclear weapons, a military analyst tells the paper" (Steve Rosenberg: 13 May 2026; YouTube) (my emphasis)
Underscoring that only,"strikes on Ukraine with tactical nuclear weapons" will realize Putin's 'crytic' statement that, "“I think the matter [i.e. his war with Ukraine] is coming to an end.", we learn from Sky News that,
"Ukraine war latest: Putin launches deadly assault on Ukraine with more than 700 drones and missiles
Ukraine has been targeted in another night of heavy Russian attacks. Moscow fired more than 700 drones and missiles during its latest attack, according to Ukraine's air force." (Sky News: 14 May 2026) (my emphasis)
This attack indicates Putin's utter desperation, especially in light of his "damp squib" May 9th Paradethat didn’t include heavy weapons for the first time in nearly two decades.
Further adding to his desperation, as Dom Nicholls(right) explains,
"This year, the tide for the battlefield may finally have turned [into Ukraine's favour]. ....
In each month of 2026 so far, Ukraine has liberated more territory than it has lost, and taken more Russian troops off the battlefield than Moscow is able to recruit"(The Telegraph: 13 May 2026: YouTube) (my emphasis)
And as CNN reports, Trump arrives in China for a summit with Xi Jinping.
"US President Donald Trump arrived in China’s capital and was welcomed with a ceremony replete with pomp and pageantry for the start of a high stakes visit carrying global consequences, as the world’s two largest economies frame their trade relationship. … The US-Israeli war with Iran, and ensuing global energy crisis, looms over the trip. Trump is expected to encourage Xi to push China-ally Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, a chokepoint vital to oil trade, and agree to a peace deal." (CNN: 13 May 2026) (my emphasis)
Like Putin now trying to extricate himself from his war with Ukraine, Trump is likewise trying to extricate himself from his war with Iran.
Putin must now be feverishly biting his nails, hoping that Xi Jinping thwarts Trump's attempt to get the Strait of Hormuz re-opened without Iran having any control over this 'globally' vital waterway.
Neither Putin nor Trump can be seen internationally to fail in Ukraine or Iran respectively.
Ukraine's continuing success in destroying Putin's 'oil infrastructure' (Silicon Curtain: YouTube: 2 May 2026) is causing Putin to 'melt down into a puddle' as he finally admits to his 'siloviki' that Russia's economy is falling into the abyss of a deep "recession".
Russian President Vladimir Putin made his concerns about the economy public as he vented frustration at aides and demanded they come up with solutions.
During a televised meeting on the economy Wednesday, he revealed that GDP shrank by combined 1.8% in January and February, adding that manufacturing, industrial production, and construction were negative.(Fortune: 18 April 2026) (my emphasis)
And as former General Ben Hodges(right) concludes in his analysis of the state of Putin's failures in the war he started in Ukraine, and the current state of his imploding Russian economy,
"Putin admitting on the record that GDP contracted.
Putin admitting that the numbers are below the governments own forecast ... Putin calling for reports that explain "Why?" … These are not the words of a leader managing a situation. … For Vladimir Putin, these are the words equivalent to a General radioing from the front that the situation is not going according to plan. … Except this front is the entire Russian economy, and the General is the man who ordered the offensive." (Ben Hodges Report: 3 May 2026: YouTube) (my emphasis)
And now Trump, his 'bosom buddy', has just announced that,
"President Donald Trump said the US will begin guiding some neutral ships trapped in the Persian Gulf out through the Strait of Hormuz starting Monday.
“The Ship movement is merely meant to free up people, companies, and Countries that have done absolutely nothing wrong — They are victims of circumstance,” Trump wrote Sunday in a social media post. “If, in any way, this Humanitarian process is interfered with, that interference will, unfortunately, have to be dealt with forcefully.”(María Paula Mijares Torres (left): Bloomberg on MSN: 4 May 2026) (my emphasis)
That 'small' financial lifeline thrown to Putin by Iran as they closed the Strait of Hormuz, and which has caused the price of oil to spike above $100, is on the verge of collapse by Trump's announcement that, "the US will begin guiding some neutral ships trapped in the Persian Gulf out through the Strait of Hormuz starting Monday." (ibid María Paula Mijares Torres.)
We should also be aware of the words of Tom Keatinge (left)(ibid Katya Adler (right)), Director of the Finance & Security Centre at the Royal United Services Institute, that,
"Despite the war in the Middle East, Keatinge says Trump, with his reputation for impatience, might pivot away at any moment from focusing on Iran if finding a deal with Tehran remains complicated.
He could then swiftly turn back to the Russia-Ukraine question. That, insists Keatinge, is why Europeans must take far more decisive action in Ukraine now than they have to date. (Katya Adler: BBC News: 3 May 2026) (my emphasis)
Almost as if to pre-empt this possibility, France 24 reports that,
"European leaders and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney gather in Armenia Monday (4 May 2026) as they seek to navigate a fraught geopolitical environment under an unpredictable White House.
US President Donald Trump will loom large over the meeting of the European Political Community (EPC). It takes place in Yerevan, a crossroads between Russia and the Middle East – the two main issues on the agenda.
"Leaders from across the continent, with Canada as a guest, will discuss how to cooperate to strengthen security and collective resilience," European Council President Antonio Costa wrote on social media as he arrived in the Armenian capital Sunday. … The EPC was initially perceived as an anti-Putin club," said Sebastien Maillard, a special adviser at the Jacques Delors Institute, a think tank.
"With the invitation to Canada, this initiative – which was initially driven by geography – is now taking on an anti-Trump slant." (France 24 on Yahoo News: 4 May 2026) (my emphasis)
Some attendees at Yervan meeting:European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, Canada's Prime Minister Mark Carney, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky and Canada's Foreign Minister Anita Anand
Both Putin and Trump now stand 'politically' naked before the world community.
"As Ukraine's Foreign Minister during the most perilous year in Europe since the Second World War, I sat in rooms where distinguisehd men and womentried to make sense of Vladimir Putin. … Their arguments, solid as they sounded, failed for one simple reason; they tried to explain as if he were one of them. He is NOT."
" … the army is not Putin’s greatest foreign policy weapon. Nor is it oil and gas.
It is corruption. Corruption is how he penetrates other countries without sending in tanks." (cf: former Prime Minister of Hungary, Vicor Orban, current Prime Minister of Slovakia, Robert Fico, and current Prime Minister of Czech Republic, Andrej Babiš)
(left to right: Victor Orban, Robert Fico, and Andrej Babiš)
He wants free societies to doubt their values, their leaders, their alliances, the cost of resistance – even the very existence of truth.Corrupt the will, and everything else becomes easier. This is the rule Putin follows with ruthless consistency." (i Paper on MSN: 26 April 2026) (my emphasis)
Kuleba goes on to explain that,
"The fear of [the EU] cornering Putin, lest Russia weaken or even begin to fracture, has paralysed thinking for years. Too many have preferred a violent empire to an unstable one.
That is not realism. It is surrender dressed up as caution. Lasting peace is only possible with the fall of the imperial mindset that sustains it.(ibid Dymetro Kuleba)
The eyes of world are now fixated on Trump and Netanyahu's war with Iran, especially on events surrounding the Strait of Hormuz and its effects on world oil trade.
Yet Trump has thrown a lifeline to Putin by lifting the sanctions against Putin's oil-trade, and so helping him to try and stem Russia's continuing economic fall that threatens to completely engulf Putin.
" Ukraine and its European allies hit out on Friday at a U.S. temporary waiver to allow countries to buy sanctioned Russian oil and petroleum products stranded at sea, with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy warning it would fund Moscow's war machine." (Reuters: 13 March 2026) (my emphasis)
"On April 15, the U.S. Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent stated that the easing of sanctions against Russia is more it won't happen.
April 17, USA sanctions were eased regarding the Russian Federation. The license allows the sale of Russian oil and petroleum products already at sea until May 16..
On April 18, three Democrats in the U.S. Senate published a joint statement in which they condemned the administration of the US president Donald Trump for the decision to ease sanctions against Russian oil.
Ambassador of Ukraine to the USA Olha Stefanishyna called on the American the administration to reinstate sanctions against Russian oil and petroleum products. (Liga.Net: 22 April 2026) (my emphasis)
"If you go back to the end of March that both the major ports in the Baltics, Primorsk and Ust- Luga, and the major Black sea port in Novorossiysk; for Russia's maritime oil, they have had to suspend production or cut it back at some point [because of Ukraine's succesful drone strategy against them].
These three ports handle 75% of Russia's maritme oil exports." (Frontline and Trump Report: 25 April 2026) (my emphasis)
"European Union ambassadors meeting in Brussels on Wednesday backed a long-delayed $106 billion loan to Ukraine and a 20th economic sanctions package on Russia. … Leaders of the 27-member-country bloc ... [signed] off on the measures at an informal summit in Cyprus on Thursday." (UPI: 22 April 2026) (my emphasis)
Meanwhile, in Russia, 'siloviki' knives against Putin are simply no longer merely being sharpened. They are being brandished in 'full sight', which has left Putin 'holing up' in his bunker.
"You have this pathetic goblin in the Kremlin for 26 years [Putin], and he doesn't even speak with you. He hides from you and if, once again cornered, he says because of bad weather [that the Russian economic system is disastrously failing]" (Anna Danylchuk: 25 April 2026) (my emphasis)
No longer is Putin secure in the fact that Trump will always come to his rescue.
The mid-term elections in the US loom large, and Trump's control of the US Senate and Congress is fast slipping through his fingers.
For Trump, this is a foreboding of the US public descending upon his financial corruption, political incompetence, and the war he started with Iran.
Kubela is right in saying that,
"It is corruption. Corruption is how he [Putin] penetrates other countries without sending in tanks." (ibid Dymetro Kuleba)
The days of Putin are numbered.
UPDATE : 29 April 2026 : GMT 09:41
In 2014, following Putin's invasion and annexation of Ukraine's Crimea, Paul Roderick Gregory(left) wrote that,
"A quarter century after the end of the cold war, the German social democrats are still providing ideological cover for the Russian Bear along with their cast-out brethren – the ex-communists of Die Linke party. These prominent German Putin-Empathizers (from Versteher or, literally “understander” in German) serve as Putin’s first line of defense against meaningful European sanctions for the Anschluss of Crimea." (Forbes: 5 April 2014) (my emphasis)
"When Germans add the word Versteher (one who understands) to a term, they generally mix flattery with irony. So a Frauenversteher (one who understands women) is usually a man who boasts excessively about his knowledge of the opposite sex. The label is now being attached to so-called Russlandversteher or Putinversteher: members of the [German] elite or intelligentsia who gush with empathy for Russia and its president, Vladimir Putin, on talk shows, in journals and at dinner parties." (Economist : May 10th 2014) (my emphasis)
Fast forward to 2026 and, in the words of Paul Gregory, Germany is still, "... providing ideological cover for the Russian Bear along with their cast-out brethren – the ex-communists of Die Linke party."
"German Chancellor Friedrich Merz (left) suggested on Monday that Ukraine may have to accept that parts of its [Ukraine's] territory could remain outside Kyiv's control in a future peace deal with Russia, linking such concessions to the country's prospects for joining the European Union." (Reuters: 27 April 2026) (my emphasis)
It would seem that the rampant Putinversteher mentality, prevalent in, " ... members
of the [German] elite or intelligentsia who gush with empathy for
Russia and its president, Vladimir Putin, on talk shows, in journals and
at dinner parties." in 2014 (ibid: Paul Roderick Gregory and The Economist ) still strongly thrives in Germany in 2026.
What German Chancellor Friedrich Merz is suggesting is nothing more than "blackmailing" Zelensky to accede to Putin in his violent attempted "theft" of Ukrainain land, by dangling in front of Zelensky accelerated EU membership for Ukraine, notwithstanding the fact that Ukraine is "regaining the land that Putin is trying to steal"
And whilst German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, "is suggesting is nothing more than "blackmailing" Zelensky to accede to Putin in his violent attempted "theft" of Ukrainain land", Konstantin Samoilov(left) informs us that,
"For the first time in 26 years, Vladimir Putin is speaking from a position of weakness, not strength.
And that is the signal ... the moment ... that is the beginning of the end. Not tomorrow, not next week, not forecast.
It has started. ..... and Putin knows, most of all". (Inside Russia: 29 April 2026: YouTube) (my emphasis)
In my last blog entry (27/03/2026)I reported that,
"Holding a loaded gun in his quivering hand, and aiming it at the heads of his Russian oligarchs,
"Vladimir Putin has asked oligarchs to donate to Russia’s budget in a bid to stabilise the country’s finances as he presses on with his invasion of Ukraine, according to three people familiar with the matter." (Max Seddon (left): Financial Times: 26 March 2026) (my emphasis)
"Putin sat down with the coutry's top oligarchs ... the wealithiest men ... his 'inner circle' ...
The tone in that room wasn't a negotiation. It was pure unadulterated blackmail.
The demand placed on the table from Putin was very simple and brutal.
"Hand over the massive capital to continue funding the war effort or face a 20% 'windfall' tax and, eventually, the dismanteling of your empires."
But instead of the usual 'fearful' complience, Putin got something very different this year.
He hit a wall of resistance. In a stunning display of defiance, all but one of the assembled billionaires, effectively snubbed Putin's demands. The concensus echoing through that room was very clear ... "We Will Not Pay!" .... "We won't pay!" ... Putin heard that for the very first time.
Putin left the meeting very angry" (Inside Russia: 11 April 2024: YouTube) (my emphasis)
Confirming this report from Konstantin Samoilov , Milena Wälde(left) also reported that,
"Peskov explained that one individual had independently offered to donate a “very large sum” to the state during a recent meeting with business leaders, describing it as a personal initiative.“This was absolutely his initiative, and not President Putin’s. Although, of course, the head of state (Putin) welcomed such an initiative,” Peskov added, insisting the money was not intended for the war." (Politico : 27 March 2026) (my emphasis)
"This "window" of of opportunity that Trump opened to Russians and Iranians when sanctions were 'temporarily lifted' will
not save the Russian economy because the Ukrainian drones keep
targeting Russia's export terminals just as the one in East Luga today,
and Primorsk yesterday. And this is something that prevents Putin from saving his economy ..." (Anna From Ukraine: 26 March 2026: YouTube) (my emphasis)
And as Trump tries to extricate himself from his war with Iran, in the hope that the Strait of Hormuz will be opened to releasing 20% of the world's oil for global delivery, BBC News reports that,
"US and Iranian delegations fail to reach a deal following lengthy peace talks in Islamabad, Pakistan - how they unfolded
US Vice-President JD Vance says Tehran's negotiating team did not accept Washington's terms, adding "this is our final and best offer"
While Iran's foreign ministry calls on the US to refrain from "excessive demands" and says talks took place in an atmosphere filled with "mistrust, suspicion and doubt"(BBC News: 12 April 2026) (my emphasis)
This total fiasco of Trump reaching a deal with Iran, potentially using Vance as the 'fall guy' for the 'Islamabad Talks Failure', was something that the international political world expected.
Putin's belief that this ongoing war between Trump and Iran could offset his closed circle of Russian oligarchs refusing to bankroll his failing war in Ukraine as the price of oil coninues to 'spike', is proving to be the fantasy of a defeated man.
Ukraine contiues to succesfully and severely restrict the flow of Russian oil onto the international market, and Putin's oligarchs are finally begin to push against his demented "Novorossiya" fantasies.
Both Putin and Trump now stand 'politically' naked before the world community.
Putin simply cannot denounce or stop supporting Iranas the Russian economy continues to implode.
And as Melania Trump pushes the "Epstein Saga" back onto the forefront of news in the US, Trump cannot denounce his own wife in public.
"Viktor Orbán's 16 years in power is over, and the system condemned as an "electoral autocracy" lies in tatters, defeated by a 45-year-old former party insider [Péter Magyar](left) who convinced a majority of Hungarians to bring it to an end. … [Péter Magyar] likened their electoral victory to the Hungarian revolution of 1848, and the uprising against Soviet occupation in 1956." (BBC News: 13 April 2026) (my emphasis)
Putin, Trump, and Vance have just witnessed what lies in store for them.
As Lenin once quoted,"The capitalists will sell us the rope with which we will hang them. Useful idiots"
Unfortunately for Putin, the electoral defeat of his 'useful idiot' in the EU', Victor Orban, who stifled EU support for Ukraine's war against Putin, further underscores the refusal of his oligarchs to bankroll his failing war with Ukraine.
One can only begin to imagine the growing fear that Putin now has for his own demise, if not also for his life.
As Konstantin Samoilov (left) reported 9 days ago,
