Putin is now 'politically' flailing to save himself.

The worlds' airwaves, internet, and media outlets are awash with an avalance of "total surprise" at the advancement of Ukrainian troops onto the soil of Russia.

'Armchair' generals throughout the world are frantically scurrying to glean exactly what has happened to Putin, as they are also trying to 'read the tea-leaves' in the wake of the Ukranian army's advance into Russias' Kursk and Belgorad regions of Russia.

Times Radio: 12 August 2024: YouTube 

DW News: 10 August 2024: YouTube

Recall that in the last blog entry I stated that,

"The current diplomatic actions and political statements coming from the EU, UK, US, and international politicians, as Putin now falters if his demands to turn Ukraine into a vassal state of Russia are not met, now changes Harold Wilson's famous phrase into, "An hour is a long time in politics". (blog entry: 5th August 2024)  

One simply cannot keep pace with the critical events unfolding in Kursk and Belgorad.

Russian popagandists are twisting themselves into 'political' pretzels trying to 'logically' respond to Ukraine's swift advances into Russia's Kursk and Belgorad oblasts.

As interviewed on Radio Times, Sergei Markov (left), political scientist at Moscow University and former adviser to President Putin has to admit that,

"If Russia does not respect the border of Ukraine, Ukraine will not respect the border of Russia. This is understandable by most of the people" (cf video below)

Further in the interview he goes on to say that,

"Any peace agreement should take the reality on the land [i.e. the land that Russia invaded, stole, and annexed, from Ukraine]

Times Radio: 12 August 2024: YouTube

It is obvious that Putin is now terrified as he furiously paces around in his bunker.

So much so that, as reported by Gergana Krasteva (left),

"Belgorod governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said people from Krasnaya Yaruga district were being evacuated.

The region remains under a missile alert, and people are being urged to shelter in their basements.

Again and again, the Kremlin’s mouthpieces have repeatedly insisted that Russia has the situation under control, but judging from Ukraine’s advances – verified by geo-located footage – this is not the case" (Metro on Microsoft Start: 12 August 2024) (my emphasis)

Furthermore, we now learn from Isabel van Brugen (right) that,

"Vladimir Putin has appointed Aleksey Dyumin, a former Kremlin agent, to take charge of defense in the Kursk region, seemingly replacing his army chief Valery Gerasimov's duties in the area, according to an official and multiple Russian pro-war military bloggers.
...
Reports of the appointment of Kremlin aide Dyumin—President Putin's former bodyguard and governor of the Tula region—came as Gerasimov was reported to be under fire after seemingly dismissing intelligence warnings that Kyiv's forces were preparing to launch an armored assault into Kursk, which borders Ukraine's northeastern Sumy region." (Newsweek: 13 August 2024) (my emphasis)

We have to ask ourselves whether Putin's 'siloviki' itself is in near total dissarray given that the head of Putin's army has been fired.

According to exiled Russian YouTube blogger, Inside Russia, Gerasimov has been replaced by Bortnikov of the FSB.

This, he believes, is Putin signing his own death warrant.
 

Inside Russia: 13 August 2024: YouTube

Putin is now 'politically' flailing to save himself.

 

 

 

(to be continued)