Russian dictator Vladimir Putin has at least four vulnerabilities that could lead to his defeat in the war against Ukraine and the general collapse of the aggressor country, according to former US military intelligence officer and security expert David H. Carstens.
Points of attention
- Putin's reliance on a narrow inner circle for support, including security services, oligarchs, and military commanders, poses a vulnerability if failures in the war persist.
- A prolonged war against Ukraine could ultimately lead to Putin's downfall, similar to how overextension led to the defeat of Hitler in his conquest of Europe.
What could destroy the Putin regime?
Reflecting on the vulnerabilities of the Russian dictator, Carstens drew attention to the fact that the Russian army will sooner or later exhaust itself and its capabilities.
"Secondly, the Russian economy is very fragile. If there were some kind of economic shock, such as a sharp drop in fuel prices or the loss of a strategic trading partner, I think the system could become destabilized," the former US intelligence officer stressed.
As for Putin's third vulnerability, it concerns the dictator's entourage and his dependence on an extremely narrow inner circle of people:
His security services, the FSB, his oligarchs, some loyal military commanders. If the failures in the war continue, if the, you know, use of soldiers continues... insecurity will grow, and it could split the inner circle.
Putin's fourth weakness is a war against Ukraine, which would destroy him.
This is exactly the same type of overvoltage that ultimately defeated Hitler in his conquest of Europe.
