How Putin’s Right-Hand Man Took Out Prigozhin

The assassination of the warlord was two months in the making and approved by Russian President Vladimir Putin’s oldest ally and confidant, an ex-spy named Nikolai Patrushev, according to Western intelligence officials and a former Russian intelligence officer. The role of Patrushev as the driver of the plan to kill Prigozhin hasn’t been previously reported.

The Kremlin has denied involvement in Prigozhin’s death, and Putin offered the closest thing to an official explanation for the plane’s fiery crash, suggesting a hand grenade had detonated onboard.

Controlling the levers of that machine is Patrushev. He has climbed to the top by interpreting Putin’s policies and carrying out his orders. Throughout Putin’s reign, he has expanded Russia’s security services and terrorized its enemies with assassinations at home and abroad. More recently his profile has grown, backing Russia’s invasion, and his son Dmitry, a former banker, has been appointed agriculture minister and is touted by some as a potential successor to Putin.

Related (from General SVR Telegram update yesterday):

Problem with Mishustin

Dear subscribers and guests of the channel! Secretary of the #Russian Security Council, Nikolai #Patrushev, and his entourage are concerned about the “growing” popularity of Mikhail Mishustin. According to Federal Protective Service polls, Mishustin not only ranks second in popularity after “#Putin,” but his rating has been growing for the fifth month in a row. What to do with this situation will be decided this coming weekend. Nikolai Patrushev said that this problem requires a quick solution.

Through the power of state-controlled media and his own persona, Putin has unsettled the West with his image as a determined adversary who rules Russia alone. In fact, he is kept in power by a vast bureaucracy that has proven durable through deepening hostilities with the West and rising domestic divisions over the botched invasion of Ukraine.

Anyone who actually pays attention to the inner workings of Russia knows this to be the case; this only comes off as a revelation to those who only hear about Russia through the lens of Western media.

Why "Digging In" Won't Save Ukraine & What the West Got Wrong about Russian Defenses Dec 22, 2023

Why Ukraine Won’t Be Able to “Dig In”

- After the defeated 5 month Ukrainian offensive and with admissions in the Western media that Ukraine’s cross-river offensive in Kherson is a failure, a growing number Ukrainian and Western military and political leaders are talking about Ukraine going on the defensive;

- Ukraine seeks to build Russian-style defensives along the line of contact and use 2024 to build up combat power;

- The main problem facing this strategy is that Ukraine has already in many places dug in since as early as 2014 and yet Russia has been able to overpower and displace Ukrainian forces regardless;

- ussia’s successful defeat of the 2023 Ukrainian offensive was owed as much to its superior firepower as it was to the construction of defensive positions;

- While Russia will not be able to conduct “big arrow” offensives without suffering heavy losses for the same reason Ukraine cannot, the existence of mines covered by artillery, FPV drones and other systems that can target Russian forces as they attempt to breach minefields;

- Russia can continue its war of attrition while placing growing pressure all along the line of contact and exploiting anywhere opportunities begin to form;

- Western commentators continue to interpret the conflict in mere 2 dimensions rather than the 4 dimensions actually required to understand Russia’s long-term strategy and why it has worked;

- The 4th dimension being time, it is important to understand what Ukraine’s combat power will look like a year from now following concerted Russian efforts to target and irreversibly diminish specific capabilities (like air defense, artillery, counter battery fire, and military aviation);

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