Stymied in Ukraine, Putin’s Government Resorts to Covert Sabotage and Panic-Mongering in the West

Putin’s government wages psychological warfare against Ukraine's allies, exploiting crises, from bank failures to chemical disasters, to sow panic and amplify popular discontent.

As Russia’s war on Ukraine grinds into its second year, much ink has been spilled in speculation on when and how it will end. Analysts debate how long Putin can cling to power. Rumors of severe health problems and impending death have appeared and disappeared repeatedly over the years. Some commentators speculate that the pressure of battlefield failures and sanctions-induced economic hardships will bring an end to Putin’s rule. Predictions of a post-Putin future range from optimistic hopes for a more-democratic government or new generation of capable leaders to more pessimistic scenarios involving a military junta, a bloody free-for-all among rival armed militias, or a dictatorship as bad as Putin’s. That is the subject for another essay.

For now, however, Putin seems determined to stay in power and continue the war, which he has portrayed as a war against the entire Western-dominated world order. Analysts assess Putin feels he has a mission to undo the humiliation of the Soviet break…