Putin is ensuring that his 'bolthole' is sufficiently protected.

 Are we at all surprised that, as reported by Arpan Rai (left),

"Germany has said it will halve its military aid to Ukraine next year, despite concerns that US support for Kyiv could potentially diminish if Republican candidate Donald Trump returns to the White House.(The Independent on Microsoft Start: 18 July 2024) (my emphasis)

One only has to recall former German Chancellor Angela Merkel (Matthew Karnitschnig: Politico: 26 July 2021) pushing for the Nord Stream2 link between Russia and Germany, and the German Chancellor before her, Gerhard Schröder (The Independent: 04 February 2022), practically running Gazprom for Putin, to realise that Germany and Putin are joined at the 'economic' hip.

Not to mention Olaf Scholtz (left) cosying up to Xi Jin Ping of China, cementing the economic ties beween these two countries.

As reported by China Daily,

"After visiting Chongqing, a key southwest manufacturing base, and Shanghai, the national financial hub, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz arrived in Beijing to meet with President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Qiang.
...
In their meeting on Tuesday, China's top leader told Scholz that cooperation between China and Germany was not a "risk" but a guarantee for stable ties and an opportunity for the future.

That Chancellor Scholz came with a bumper delegation of government ministers and business executives suggests that he views things the same way." (China Daily: 16 April 2024) (my emphasis) 

MoneyControl : May 2024: YouTube

Arpan Rai further reports that,

"Alarm bells rang across Europe this week after Trump picked Senator JD Vance, who opposes military aid for Ukraine and warned Europe will have to rely less on the United States to defend the continent, as his candidate for vice president." (ibid Arpan Rai)

As also reported by Laura King (left),

"Publicly, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has telegraphed confidence his government can weather whatever storm might be approaching. On Monday, he told reporters in Kyiv that “we will work together” with any U.S. leadership.

Vance (right) is “an outspoken proponent of pro-Russian, pro-Putin policies,” said Berlin, a senior fellow at the Center for European Policy Analysis. “And he’s particularly dangerous because he is a sharper communicator than Trump.”

Like Trump, his running mate has called for a quick end to the war — which Zelensky’s camp considers code for a demand that it cede territory to Russia, consigning Ukrainian citizens in occupied cities, towns and villages to a brutal fate." (LA Times on Microsoft Start: 17 July 2024) (my emphasis) (cf also: Veronika Melkozerova: Politico: 16 July 2024)

JD Vance joins staunch Putin-supporters Donald Trump and Victor Orban of Hungay, to the obvious delight of Putin himself.

This mild comfort of Putin is, however, tinged with his current paranoid fear.

As reported by Iona Cleave,

"Vladimir Putin has been forced to beef up defences around his heavily-guarded palace north of Moscow to defend against deep Ukrainian drone strikes.
...
Ukraine’s relentless drone strikes, that have successfully targeted Russian air bases, have forced Moscow’s military command “to prioritise limited air defence assets to cover what it deems high-value targets”, the ISW said.
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The response to prioritise the palace has, however, stretched thin the defences in the surrounding region and St Petersburg, according to the Russian Telegram channel, VChK-OGPU." (The Telegraph: 17 July 2024) (my emphasis)

Furthermore, as reported by John Varga,

"Vladimir Putin may have inadvertently revealed where he plans to escape if he has to quit  the Kremlin in a hurry. (cf Iona Cleave above)

And it appears the Russian tyrant has raided his own army for vital military resources to ensure he remains safe in the event of a revolt.
...

During last year's Wagner rebellion, Putin is believed to have left Moscow in a panic and to have headed to his luxury estate (left) in northwestern Russia.
...
Former Russian oligarch Mikhail Khodorkovsky said contacts told him the Russian strongman had most likely made a beeline for his Valdai residence (cf Iona Cleave above), located 250 miles from the capital between the Tver and Novgorod regions. (Express: 17 July 2024) (my emphasis)

And as Alice Scarsi (right) also reports,

"To date, more than half a million Russian military personnel have been killed or wounded during Russia’s war. The average daily number of Russian casualties (killed and wounded) in May was 1,200 per day.

"It is estimated that 70,000 Russian soldiers have been killed or wounded in the last 60 days alone." (Express: 17 July 2024) (my emphasis)

Whilst he may be receiving 'mild' comfort from the 'fawning' and supportive statements of Trump, Orban, and JD Vance, Putin is, nonetheless, ensuring that his 'bolthole' is sufficiently protected lest the fate that befell Muammar Gaddafi of Libya also befalls him.

UPDATE: 19 July 2024

Chris Mason and Sophie Williams: BBC: 18 July 2024

 

 

 

(to be continued)