The war in Ukraine has taken a completely different turn in recent weeks. Ukraine has multiplied the counter-offensives and made significant territorial gains. Faced with these breakthroughs by Zelensky’s forces, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced last week a “partial mobilization” in his country. The words of the head of the Kremlin provoked a real panic and many Russians attempted to flee the territory. Of the manifestations also erupted across the country. Returning to these recent events, Kremlin spokesman Dmitri Peskov acknowledged that “mistakes had been made”. Indeed, while the authorities claimed that the mobilization would only concern people with military experience or the required skills, other profiles found themselves summoned to go to the battlefield. Elderly people, sick people or even students appeared on the lists. Mr Peskov hoped that these misunderstandings would be quickly “corrected”.
Faced with these problems encountered by Moscow, some are wondering about the possibility of seeing Mr. Putin start a de-escalation in the conflict on Ukrainian soil. According to Robert Baer, a former CIA agent and analyst for CNN, the chances of witnessing such a reaction from the Russian president are almost nil. “He just can’t give up that much ground, let his defeat show and continue to lead Russia,” he said. “He is a strong man. This is the image he has given himself for the past twenty years.”
“Vladimir Putin is cornered”
For Mr. Baer, Vladimir Putin is “cornered”. “Like a shark, he must keep moving forward,” he continued, brushing aside the possibility of the Kremlin chief sitting down at the negotiating table.
About the nuclear threat, once again agitated by Mr. Putin during his speech on September 21, the analyst considered that it was real. Like President Zelensky, he claimed the Kremlin leader was not bluffing. “The risk of seeing him use nuclear weapons is increasing day by day. The Russians, with whom I am in contact, are convinced that he will do it. I don’t know how well informed they are,” concluded the former CIA agent, on CNN. “It was only a threat initially, but the more trouble Putin has, the more likely he is to use nuclear weapons. I wouldn’t be surprised if he didn’t use them against Ukrainian forces.”