“Putin’s plan was to capture Kyiv in the same day and liquidate the Ukrainian government, installing a puppet regime led by the father of his goddaughter, Victor Medvedchuk.”
I actually pretty much agree with that although Putin would have needed a LOT of help from the Ukrainians, due to the meager manpower...obviously that didn’t happen, not in that part of Ukraine.
Bobl
I actually pretty much agree with that although Putin would have needed a LOT of help from the Ukrainians, due to the meager manpower...obviously that didn’t happen, not in that part of Ukraine.Putin evidently believed he would get support from ordinary Ukrainians. I think that the reasons he believed this was due to:
- The way Ukrainian citizens in Crimea turned over in 2014 of course this was because the area was far more pro-Russian (44%) than even the Donbas (23% to 27%)
- , in 2014 joining Russia was a "fresh idea" and Ukraine was a failing idea. That changed in the 8 years
- Putin's invasion in 2014 strengthened the idea of Ukraine by giving a common "enemy" - just as the English conquest "created" Ireland and the British conquest "created" India etc.
- Russia is corrupt (as Ukraine was/is -- I argue that it was improving while Russia wasn't, however you may have a different opinion) - this meant that the truth on the ground was distorted
- Russians have lived for centuries in the concept of maskirova or Potemkim villages - so the upper echelons have no idea of the ground realities
- A dictator ends up being surrounded by yes-men, as Putin was/is
I really think that if Putin had stuck to his SALAMI tactics of slicing off parts of Ukraine at a time, he would have got away with it.