Putin is disguising his fear of his imminent downfall

Putin and his 'siloviki' are popping the champange corks in the Kremlin as Trump threatens to invade, and annex, Greenland.

Andrew Weisman (right) outlines the international political and legal implications of Trump's threat to invade Greenland.

More significantly, he outlines that Trump's threatening
invasion of Greenland mirrors Putin's invasion of, and subsequent war with, Ukraine, which is playing directly into the hands of Putin.

In an interview with Nicolle Wallace (left), Weismann states that, 

"I'd like everyone to think about the message to Russia. Russia has engaged in an unprovoked attack on Ukraine. The Congress heretofore has viewed that ... to defend Ukraine in the face of Russia.

But this is sending a message that what Russia is doing is what America is going to do, and what China could do with Taiwan. 

This "might makes right" view of the world, where you blow off the United Nations Charter, you blow off the sense of the Rule of Law internally, domestically, and internally, is what leads to 'global chaos' in a world that's not civilized at peace.'" (ms.now: 17 January 2026) (my emphasis)

 

ms.now: 17 January 2026 (deadline-white-house) and ms.now : 17 January 2026 (11th-hour)

And against this backdrop, as reported by Dan Peleschuk (left),

" Two people were killed and dozens more wounded in a mass Russian drone attack across Ukraine overnight, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Sunday, as U.S. and Ukrainian negotiators hashed out a post-war plan in the latest round of peace talks." (Reuters: 18 January 2026) (my emphasis) 

And as reported by Bryony Gooch,Shweta Sharma and Maryam Zakir-Hussain (right), 

"Ukraine's peace negotiators arrived in the United States on Saturday for talks on details of a proposed agreement to end the four-year war with Russia, the head of the Ukrainian president's office said.
… 
During the talks, Zelensky said his team would seek clarity from the US on the Russian stance towards diplomatic efforts to end the war. Moscow has refused to budge on its maximalist demands for a peace deal. " (The Independent on MSN: 18 January 2026) (my emphasis)

 

The Independent on MSN: 18 January 2026

Furthermore, as reported by as reported by Russell Myers (left),

"King Charles has reiterated the United Kingdom's commitment to Ukraine, telling the nation "we stand with you" amid the deadly ongoing Russian invasion. The monarch also spoke of his hopes for a lasting peace that safeguards its "security, sovereignty and prosperity". (The Mirror:  16 January 2026) (my emphasis) 

And whilst Putin and his 'siloviki' may be toasting Trump's threat to invade and annex Greenland, in the face of Greenlanders demonstrating against his potential actions, 

 

Guardian News: 17 January 2026: YouTube

Ivan Diakonov reports that,

"The Russian economy has found itself in its worst state since the beginning of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine due to a steep decline in oil revenues and the depletion of reserves. Despite claims by US President Donald Trump about Russia's supposed "advantage" in the war, economists are predicting a banking crisis and a recession in Moscow as early as next year." (Yahoo Finance: 23 December 2025) (my emphasis)

And we now learn from Catherine Mackinlay (left) and Will Stewart (right) that,

"Vladimir Putin has suffered a massive blow after Ukrainian drones attacked his top-secret super-weapon testing hub, denting possible hopes of Russia launching its 'unstoppable' Oreshnik missiles. Specialist military site Militarnyi revealed that "Ukrainian drones attacked the 4th State Central Inter-Service Test Range Kapustin Yar in Astrakhan Region."
… 
One Russian aim in a new blitzkrieg on Ukraine could be a "genocidal" campaign to destroy the country's nuclear power plant substations in a bid to force people to surrender. Electricity transmission substations ensure the operation of the atomic power plants." (Daily Express on MSN: 18 January 2026) (my emphasis)

Putin's celebration of Trump threatening to invade and annex Greenland is a celebration that disguises his fear of his imminent downfall. 

  

 (to be continued)