Putin has nowhere to go except to use any means to vanquish Ukraine

The desperation of Putin's war machine in Ukraine is evidenced by the facts that,

• As reported by Zakharchenko Yuliia, "The Russian army shelled Kyiv with strategic air-to-ground cruise missiles X101 launched from the Caspian Sea. ... The X-101 (pronounced Ha-101) is a strategic air-to-ground cruise missile using radar mitigation technology. " (Fakti : 31 October 2022) (my emphasis)
• Antony Ashkenaz reports that, " Russia has warned that it is prepared to obliterate commercial space systems that are being used to aid Ukraine, in a veiled threat to SpaceX CEO Elon Musk. .....[IF] Putin were to attack SpaceX satellites, it would signal a sharp escalation of tension between Russia and the US, as no country has ever carried out a missile strike against an enemy satellite. (Express : 30 October 2022) (my emphasis) 
• Will Stewart and Sam Elliott-Gibbs report that, "A senior Putin military expert has threatened both Britain and America with full-scale nuclear strikes amid Russian claims that Ukraine is poised to release a “dirty bomb”. Colonel Igor Korotchenko, editor-in-chief of Russia ’s National Defence magazine, told state TV that Vladimir Putin should launch Topol-M attacks on military targets in the two Western countries.(Mirror : 25 October 2022) (my emphasis)
  
• Michael Curzon and Matthew Dooley report that, "The chief of the paramilitary Wagner Group has let slip that Russia is recruiting “convicts suffering from serious diseases”. Britain’s Ministry of Defence today pointed to comments shared by Yevgeny Prigozhin, “apparently admitting allegations that his private military company… had altered its standards and was recruiting Russian convicts suffering from serious diseases including HIV and Hepatitis C”." (Express : 31 October 2022) (my emphasis)

Sky News : 30 October 2022 : YouTube

These developments are further compounded by the fact, as reported by Pavel Polityuk and Michelle Nichols (left), that,

"The United Nations, Turkey and Ukraine are pressing ahead to implement a Black Sea grain deal with a transit plan in place for 16 ships on Monday, despite Russia suspending its participation in the pact that has allowed the export of Ukrainian agricultural products to world markets.
...
Russia, which invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24, halted its role in the Black Sea deal on Saturday for an "indefinite term" because it could said it could not "guarantee safety of civilian ships" travelling under the pact after an attack on its Black Sea fleet." (Reuters :30 October 2022) (my emphasis)

As Sarah Fortinsky (right) also reports,

"Putin is using "food as a weapon of war," says USAID head Samantha Power.
...
The head of the United States Agency for International Development urged Russia to continue its participation in the United Nations-brokered Black Sea grain deal, writing that “the world cannot afford for Putin to continue to use food as a weapon of war.” (CNN : 31 October 2022) (my emphasis)

Already there is appearing a line-up of Putin's possible replacement being touted in the Kremlin. These are :-

• Dmitri Medvedev, now Head of Putin's Security Council
• Sergey Kiriyenko, who oversaw Putin's recent illegal annexation of Ukraine teritories
• Nokolai Patrushev, Head of the Security Council (FSB)
• Dmitry Patrushev, son of Nikolai and Agriculture Minister
• Yevgeny Prigozhin, Chief of the Wagner Mercenary Group.
  

Newsweek : 25 October 2022

Chloe Mayer (left) speculates that,

"A restaurant magnate dubbed "Putin's Chef" is setting up his own military to fight alongside Russia's army in Ukraine—but experts say the organization could "pose a threat to Putin's rule."
...
"Prigozhin (right) continues to accrue power and is setting up a military structure parallel to the Russian Armed Forces, which may come to pose a threat to Putin's rule—at least within the information space," ISW analysts wrote." (Newsweek : 25 October 2022) (my emphasis)

Prigozhin, however, when viewed against the political heavyweights of Putin's 'siloviki' and former comrades, stands a rather slim chance of replacing Putin.

What the west cannot expect is that a replacement from this motley crew of possible succesors will roll back Putin's delusional beliefs that precipitated :-

• his illegal annexation of Crimea in 2014, 
• his first war with Ukraine in the Donbas in 2014, 
• and his current war with Ukraine in 2022.

Neither Putin, nor his prospective successor, has anywhere else to go except to annihilate, by any means available to them, the country of Ukraine.

 

 

(to be continued)