U.S. intelligence has obtained information that shows that in recent weeks someone in Russian President Vladimir Putin’s inner circle has directly expressed his opposition to him over the handling of the war in Ukraine.
The criticism represents the clearest sign of turmoil within Russia’s leadership over its handling of a war that Moscow mishandled, forcing Putin last month to order the mobilization of hundreds of thousands of troops in a desperate bid to make up for it. According to the Washington Post, in the past, the trend changed the dominant battle casualties.
This American newspaper, citing people familiar with the matter on condition of anonymity, has considered this information important enough to be included in President Joe Biden’s daily briefing and shared by other American officials.
One source said the dissatisfaction expressed by one of Putin’s associates was due to what insiders described as Russia’s mismanagement of the war effort (mobilizing resources to support the military) and mistakes by those responsible for conducting military operations. .
The identity of this informed source has not been revealed to the American newspaper, but his name has been mentioned in American intelligence reports.
According to this newspaper, the newly received information, along with the public statements of Russian officials, confirm the severity of the differences in the attic of the officials close to Putin, and the importance of the matter is that these officials have always refused to inform the Russians. The leader of any bad news, and what Putin has achieved now from his isolation has surpassed him at any other time during his 22 years in power.
On the other hand, the spokesperson of the US National Security Council refused to comment on the information reported by this American newspaper.
It is noteworthy that the people that Putin sees as close or trusted aides and advisers are only a few, mainly his colleagues during his time in the KGB and people he met during his time as deputy mayor of St. Petersburg. , are formed. 1990s after the collapse of the Soviet Union.
Although the war is approaching its eighth month, Russia’s victory remains unclear, prompting intelligence officials to say that Putin’s absolute loyalty may be in doubt, but they cautioned that there is no sign that The Russian leader is in danger. Weakening or displacement
A Western intelligence official said: “Since the start of Russia’s campaign against Ukraine, we have been told that concerns have increased in Putin’s inner circle.” era, misguided orientations and military shortcomings that have widened its scope.”
Another senior Western official said the internal tensions “are consistent with the direction the Russians are taking and the atmosphere in the Kremlin. There are many who are convinced that things are not going well or that things are not going in the right direction.” “
In addition, Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov acknowledged that there is disagreement and debate among Russian leaders over important decisions such as the general mobilization decision, where Peskov told The Washington Post, “Opinions differ at such moments. Some of us think we should take a different path, but it’s all part of the normal course of business.
Asked about the differences in Putin’s inner circle, Peskov explained: “There are arguments about the economy, the conduct of military operations, and there are also arguments about the education system. This is part of the normal course of business, not a sign of anything. . Division.”
But Peskov emphasized that US intelligence reports that someone close to the Russian president has expressed direct opposition to him are “absolutely false.”
A Russian official said Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese leader Xi Jinping’s declining support for Putin’s war effort during a conference that brought them together with the Russian president in Samarkand last month, about a meeting Putin held in 2017. did, said Basij announcement, that the President of Russia “. He seemed to me to be in a vulnerable position. All these months we have heard that half the world is with us. But now no Modi and nothing of that does not support.”
In another interview this week, the Russian official said he had heard no direct opposition to Putin from his inner circle, but that parliamentary committee heads had “objections” to how the president and the military were running. The war and about “Mismanagement in the provision of military supplies and why not” the campaign is going as it should.
Meanwhile, top security officials in Europe said they had received no information suggesting anyone had dared to challenge Putin by directly opposing what was happening in Ukraine, and indicated they had not seen U.S. intelligence reports on Putin’s opponents.
However, a senior European security official said: “There is growing criticism of Putin, even within the Kremlin itself, behind his back. Some see him as obstinate and obsessed with Ukraine. Not everyone necessarily shares that obsession.”
On the other hand, two Russian executives of companies in contact with political officials said criticism was already there and the coming weeks could be decisive in determining Putin’s future and deciding whether to go to war.
Meanwhile, another Washington Post report noted that “Russia’s defense minister is under fire at home and his troops are pulling back.”
Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu faced intense political pressure on Thursday, October 6, over a series of uncontrolled retreats in Ukraine, with prominent nationalist figures publicly attacking the military leadership for retreating into areas Putin claimed they had expanded. they did Control and annexation to Russia. .
This came after the Russian military launched several missile strikes on Thursday, October 6, into the Zaporozhye region, the administrative center of Ukraine’s Zaporozhye province, which was annexed by Russia. City officials said the rockets hit residential complexes and killed 3 people.
There has been increasingly violent criticism of Russia’s leadership from hard-line nationalists, some of whom have long resented Shoigu, led by Yevgeny Prigozhin, a Russian tycoon close to Putin and founder of the Wagner mercenary group, and Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov. . Especially since they both have subordinate military forces fighting in Ukraine.
The American newspaper also wrote that Russia’s defense minister has become more vulnerable after humiliating military defeats by Russian forces in recent weeks, particularly the loss of Liman earlier this week, a strategic transit hub in Donetsk, as well as the surrender of Russian forces. Last month, Russian forces were present in most of the northeastern areas of Kharkiv.
In a video posted on Telegram, Kirill Strymusov, deputy head of Russia’s Kherson regional administration, said that Shoigu’s performance in Ukraine was so bad that any real officer would have killed himself instead of him, and many people if they were in Ukraine. The position of the Minister of Defense and Affairs reached this point, if they were real officers, they would shoot themselves, “but many people do not understand the meaning of the word officer”.
On Thursday, pro-Russian Telegram channels released a video in which several hundred Russian soldiers recently joined Basij, complaining of being detained “like a herd of cattle”, forced to buy their own food and given old rusty weapons. The video went viral on social media after it was posted on Telegram by Rybar, a pro-Kremlin military blog with more than 900,000 subscribers.
Igor Girkin, a hard-line nationalist military blogger and former FSB officer, criticized Russia’s Chief of General Staff, Valery Gerasimov, and predicted that the Defense Ministry “will soon be held accountable for many things it has done or not done before. During the war. What will be said is a person in a prominent position, and this was a direct reference to Shoigu, according to the American newspaper.
Source: Lebanon Debate
