Putin has reached his last throw of the dice in his war with Ukraine.

 In a recent blog entry (29 December 2022) I wrote that,

"The desperation of Putin and Lavrov to conceal the "truth" behind their actions and their words may, indeed, point to growing rumblings of a coup against Putin. (cf Ciaran McGrath)

For Putin, the consequences to himself of the truth behind his current actions is simply too ghastly for him to contemplate.

Has Putin's "truth" now become one of "fear"? "(blog entry 29 December 2022)

And in a rare Kremlin admission, Will Stewart and Chris Jewers  reported that,

"In a rare admission, Russia's defence ministry said 63 soldiers had died in the fiery blast which destroyed the temporary barracks in a former vocational college in Makiivka, twin city of the Russian-occupied regional capital of Donetsk." (Mail Online: 2 January 2023) (my emphasis)

This Kremlin admission has now been proven to be untrue.

As reported by  Pavel Polityuk , 

"Igor Girkin (right), a former commander of pro-Russian troops in eastern Ukraine who is now one of the highest profile Russian nationalist military bloggers, said hundreds and been killed or wounded in the blast. Ammunition had been stored at the site and military equipment there was un-camouflaged, he said." (Reuters : 2 January 2023) (my emphasis)

Reuters : 2 January 2023

As also reported by Euronews,

"Increasingly influential Russian war reporters say hundreds were killed in an attack on a vocational school in Makiivka and have accused top military commanders of failing to learn lessons from their past mistakes.
...
“My God, who is going to believe the number 63? The building has been completely destroyed,” wrote a Russian, Nina Vernykh, on the main Russian social network VKontakte." (Euronews : 3 January 2023) (my emphasis) 

And as Putin's war strategy continues to unravel, Berny Torre (left) now also reports that,

"Vladimir Putin faces furious calls from Moscow officials to be tried for treason after up to 400 of Russian soldiers were killed in a Ukrainian strike. The Russian dictator is under pressure as senior politicians and war commentators openly blasted the "stupid losses". (Express : 3 January 2023) (my emphasis)

(Express : 3 January 2023)

Adding to Putin's woes, 

• French President Emmanuel Macron in his New Year's address on Dec. 31 said that France will continue to help Ukraine "without fail" and "until victory itself."
  
  "We will build a just and durable peace together. Count on France and count on Europe," Macron said. (Kyiv Independent : 1 January 2023) (my emphasis)

• The EU would begin disbursing the 18 billion euros support package for Ukraine in monthly tranches, European Commission Head Ursula von der Leyen wrote on Twitter after her first diplomatic phone call in 2023 with President Volodymyr Zelensky. (Kyiv Independent : 2 January 2023) (my emphasis)

• Taking to Twitter, [Prime Minister of the Netherlands, Mark] Rutte said: ”Ukraine has held its own against Russia’s barbaric invasion for almost a year now.
  
  ”The months ahead are crucial. I just spoke to President @ZelenskyyUa and assured him that the Netherlands will do everything it can to help Ukraine not only defend itself, but also win the war.” (The Sun : 3 January 2023) (my emphasis)

•  President Zelensky @ZelenskyyUa and his fellow Ukrainians stand tall in the face of Russian attacks on Kyiv. In a call today, I [Norwegian Prime Minister, Jonas Gahr Store] was glad to reassure him of Norway’s full and continued financial support and support to Ukraines legitimate self defence. — Jonas Gahr Støre (@jonasgahrstore) (The Sun : 3 January 2023) (my emphasis)

• Rishi Sunak [UK Prime Minister] reaffirmed the UK’s support for Ukraine in an early January call with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
  
  The two leaders spoke after a Ukrainian rocket attack killed dozens of Russian soldiers in a town in the Donetsk region. Mr Sunak told the Ukrainian president that the country could “count on the UK to continue to support it for the long term”. (ITV News : 3 January 2023) (my emphasis)

ITV News : 3 January 2023

But perhaps most disconcerting of all for Putin,  Maria Sheahan (left) reports that,

"NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg called on NATO member states to supply more weapons to Ukraine, according to an interview published on Friday.

"I call on allies to do more. It is in all our security interests to make sure Ukraine prevails and (Russian President Vladimir) Putin does not win," Stoltenberg told German news agency DPA. (Reuters : 30 December 2022) (my emphasis)

Ukraine's President, Volodymyr Zelensky, predicts that Putin will redouble his use of Iranian drones to try to beat the people of Ukraine into submission.

As reported by Sarakshi Rai (right),

"Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky stressed in his New Year address to Ukrainians that Russia is planning a “prolonged” attack with drones supplied by Iran.
...
We have information that Russia is planning a prolonged attack with ‘Shaheds’. Its bet may be on exhaustion. On exhaustion of our people, our air defense, our energy sector,” he wrote." (Yahoo (The Hill) : 3 January 2023) (my emphasis)

Putin has now reached his last throw of the dice in his war with Ukraine.

 

(to be continued)