The American TV channel prepared material on the second anniversary of the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine. This war showed a number of miscalculations of Vladimir Putin.
The war with Ukraine: Putin's fatal mistakes
CNN's chief international correspondent, Matthew Chance, admitted in his piece that he was among the people who were wrong about the likelihood of a full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine due to the recklessness of such a decision on the part of the Kremlin.
However, he noted that these skeptics were also right to some extent, because this war proved a whole series of miscalculations of Russian dictator Vladimir Putin.
The article notes that few could understand why Putin, who maintains the image of a prudent Russian leader, would go on such a risky military adventure, especially when the simple threat of an invasion of Ukraine was already producing results.
After all, US President Joe Biden met with Putin at the summit and called the US and Russia two great powers, thereby elevating the Russian dictator after previous US presidential administrations tried to downplay Russia's position and influence.
In addition, a few days before the Russian invasion, Washington offered Moscow a pragmatic assessment of the security problems of the aggressor country, signaling an openness to compromise. Directing Russian forces against one of the largest standing armies in the region – the ZSU – seemed uncharacteristically reckless for Moscow, and therefore unlikely.
Where Putin miscalculated
The author of the article reminded of Putin's main miscalculations. Yes, Russia still euphemistically calls its full-scale invasion a "special military operation." Although this is bloodshed on a catastrophic scale, the likes of which have not been seen in Europe for generations.
Even modest estimates indicate hundreds of thousands of dead and wounded on both sides. Small achievements, such as the recent capture of Avdiyivka, came at a huge price, the author writes.
The previously recognized Russian army proved extremely unprepared and vulnerable to modern weapons in the hands of a determined Ukrainian resistance. According to the journalist, even if the Russian-Ukrainian war ends tomorrow, it will take many years to restore the strength and size of the army of the aggressor country.
In addition, Russia has become the country against which the international community has applied the largest sanctions. A court in The Hague found Putin guilty of war crimes and issued a warrant for his arrest.
Russia was also distorted from the inside during 2 years of full-scale war. Hundreds of thousands of Russians fled abroad to avoid conscription.
Disappointment with the way the war was being waged provoked an armed uprising on the part of the "Wagner" PMK. Armed mercenaries of Yevgeny Prigozhin went to Moscow and issued an unprecedented challenge to the Kremlin.
Oleksiy Navalny, whom the author calls Putin's loudest critic, also recently died in the colony. Against the backdrop of a broader crackdown on dissent, Russia sank further into isolation and darkness.
The author recalled Chechnya, Georgia, Russia's participation in the war in Syria and called February 24, 2022 a turning point against the background of this event.
The point is not only that Putin miscalculated in his ambitions to conquer Ukraine, but also that instead of the limited campaign he expected, an open-ended war is now underway.
Rather, his full-scale invasion of Ukraine marked the moment when Putin finally abandoned any semblance of cooperation with the West and any pretense that dissent and criticism within that country would be tolerated, the article says.
2 years after the full-scale invasion, Putin is tightening his grip on power and silencing opponents.
The elections scheduled for March 2024 should confirm the 5th presidential term of the Russian dictator. In private conversations, many Russians quietly hope for a change in Russia's course. However, few believe that this will happen now or even soon.
Putin is intensifying large-scale repression in Russia and seeks to match Stalin's tyranny
Journalists from The Times note that Russia has been hit by a wave of harsh repression by Kremlin dictator Vladimir Putin, the likes of which Russians have not seen since the time of Joseph Stalin.
As long as Putin is in power, the war will not stop. A reduction in hostilities is possible, there may even be a truce. But Russia will not give up its intention to end Ukraine in its current form... Putin expects Kyiv to capitulate. But if he dies tomorrow, then for a large part of the Russian elite it will be enough to simply get a piece of land. They don't have such ambitions, and they don't live under the illusion that Kyiv will surrender, Russian opposition political scientist Tetyana Stanova said in a comment to the publication's journalists.
The authors of the article note that Ukrainian civilians are suffering a lot as a result of the criminal war unleashed by the Kremlin, but after the terrible atrocities committed by the occupying Russian army, the citizens of Ukraine will never agree to admit defeat.
We are fighting a monster, a huge monster. David will eventually defeat Goliath. But this year will be very, very difficult, said Serhii Piven, lieutenant colonel of the Ukrainian army.
