An analysis conducted by the American magazine “Foreign Policy” revealed that the voices of opposition from within Russia have risen to President Vladimir Putin, more than a year after the war waged by his country against Ukraine.
According to the report, the rare criticism leveled at Putin focused mainly on the fact that the attack plan on Ukraine “had gone astray,” but was not directed at the war itself.
“Foreign Policy” said that the prevailing belief in Russia was that the military attack would achieve its goals within a short period, with the exclusion of it turning into an open war with uncertain results, as is the case now.
In a long speech last week, Putin did not talk about the reason for continuing the “special military operation” as Moscow calls it, and instead called on the Russians to “prepare for the long haul”, indicating that the time for the end of the war does not seem clear on the horizon.
However, it seems that the unexpected field losses incurred by the Russian forces in equipment and soldiers raised unusual public criticism against Putin, even if the war does not in any way represent an existential threat to Moscow.
Critics, mainly Putin’s allies, tend to point out that the army was not decisive enough in the war, and may not have been able to end it as quickly as they expected, which led to its prolongation, with heavy economic damage to Russia and the world.
Among the most prominent critics are Yevgeny Prigozhin, commander of the Wagner Special Military Group, Chechen President Ramzan Kadyrov, and prominent military commander Igor Girkin.
Foreign Policy says that their criticism may be motivated by personal ambition, but their views reflect an admission that the war did not go according to plan.
Russian Wagner forces.. combat missions
Wagner is in danger
Prigozhin publicly stated that Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and Chief of Staff Valery Gerasimov “deliberately stopped the supply of ammunition to the Wagner Group who are fighting in Bakhmut,” the city in eastern Ukraine that is witnessing fierce battles.
Prigozhin also accused the Russian army of taking credit for the progress made by the “Wagner” group in the Ukrainian town of Solidar, which is the first field success for the Russians in months.
The American magazine says that Prigozhin is increasingly seeking a role as a public figure in Russia, taking advantage of his proximity to the Kremlin, and entering the world of politics, not being limited to his mission as the leader of a private military group.
Experts and political analysts believe, according to what they told “Foreign Policy”, that Prigozhin recently felt “indispensable to Putin”, presenting himself as “the heroic face of the war”, and “knows that the Russian president needs him now more than ever.” .
Joanna de Dios Pereira, a fellow at the Royal United Services Institute in Europe, referred to what she considered Prigozhin’s “unique approach”. During the war. This is a political stunt, I don’t think the Kremlin was thinking of it.”
On the doorstep of the Kremlin
And she considered that the leader of the “Wagner” group wants to increase his political influence and enter the Kremlin, noting that “the elite will never accept that.”
On the other hand, Gulnaz Sharafutdinova, a professor of Russian politics at the Russia Institute at King’s College, said that the rise of leaders who run armed men outside the state structure in Russia “threatens its institutions.”
“This is destabilizing because it reflects the failure of the state,” she added.
“Although Prigozhin does not pose a threat to Putin at the present time, his increased visibility is causing concern in Moscow,” the Russian Academy of Sciences said.
Exiled Russian businessman and opposition activist Mikhail Khodorkovsky considered Prigozhin’s quest for ascendancy “annoying and angering other influential figures in Putin’s circle, and even the president himself.”
Clashes in Jericho.. and Bakhmut is the secret word of the war in Ukraine
Demands to change the strategy
As for Kadyrov, who is close to Putin, he said last September in a message on “Telegram”, that “if changes are not made in the war strategy today or tomorrow, I will have to talk with the country’s leadership and the Ministry of Defense to explain the real situation on the ground.”
Kadyrov plays an important role in the war, as he is a major political and military supporter of Putin, and he sends his forces to the regions that Moscow announced its annexation in order to help the Russians tighten control over them.
Katrina Stepanenko, a Russian affairs analyst at the Institute for the Study of War, told Foreign Policy that Kadyrov is “driven by interests (…) he wants to expand his influence and make him responsible for the regions controlled by Russia.”
In the same vein, Girkin, a prominent Russian military and former defense minister in the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic that has not gained international recognition, criticized what Putin said last December that the military offensive was “stable”.
Girkin has also previously claimed credit for the Russian attack on the Ukrainian Crimea peninsula that resulted in its annexation to Moscow in 2014, saying that this was the result of his operation in the Ukrainian city of Sloviansk.
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