Mediocre courtiers to crafty thugs: Who could replace Putin?
Speculation about the theoretical downfall of Russia’s leader has grown after multiple battlefield defeats and national fury over a botched military mobilisation.
When President Vladimir Putin yelled, “We will win!” at a Red Square concert to celebrate his illegal annexation of Ukrainian lands on September 30, he projected the desperate hubris of a man terrified of defeat.
In Putin’s mind, he cannot lose. But multiple battlefield defeats and national fury over a botched military mobilisation have broken a taboo in Moscow on discussions about what would happen if Putin did lose – not just the war, but his seeming bid to be leader-for-life, according to four members of Russia’s business elite.
