If something is wrong, the one to watch is Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu.
He’s been a major hawk regarding Ukraine, Crimea, and Donbas.
He and several other high-ranking officers were in Crimea on the 11th, and in Rostov today.
Are the Russians upset over Putin’s actions in the Ukraine? Or in Crimea?
What’s weird is Putin’s encroachment into Ukraine seemed to be perfect timing, considering Obama’s reluctance to challenge Putin in that regard.
However, I’ve been wondering if some of the people surrounding Putin are concerned about the election in the USA next year and the possibility of a hawk President, which would probably put an instant halt to anything going on in either Ukraine or Crimea.
I may be way off base, but the possibility of having to deal with a strong USA mmight not seem like a good thing to most Russians.