The Landscape At This Point

 Focus wrote up a piece on the war and discussed the intelligence input these days....to Putin.  At the end of this article....I sat there a while and pondered.

So, what is generally said now out of Russia....Putin has quit listening to the FSB (the former KGB).  Faulty plan and faulty intelligence....has led him to question their information.

Naturally, you'd then ask....who does Putin 'listen' to?  Well....the insider view is that he's got his Defense Minister (Shoigu) and Secretary of the Security Council (Patrushev).  Who informs them of the situation?  That's not clear, and it wouldn't shock me if they had their own spies within FSB....who briefed them each morning.

But here's the funny thing, if you follow the Focus reporting....Putin has deployed the Russian National Guard into the Ukraine. Most people will tell you that they are trained for x-type of missions....mostly for public order/police action....in Russia.  They aren't trained for combat missions or assault type/conventional warfare.

Why the National Guard folks?  Well...what Focus suggested is that Putin in his mind.....believes that this roving Ukrainian 'gangs'.....not trained military folks, and that his National Guard can handle untrained 'gangs'.

Most people would look at this developing situation, the poor planning process of the FSB, and the illogical mind of Putin....to say that nothing makes sense.  I tend to agree with that thinking now.

I'd also have to ask....is the frontal command actually reporting tank/APC losses or manpower causalities to Putin?  I don't think individual front commanders are passing that information on.  If anything, they are still asking for more tanks....more troops....etc. 

Fear of Putin making the element of military operations and leadership a farce?  I would imagine it's very much like the final hundred days of Hitler....where if you had nothing good to say....you just kept your mouth shut.  

Focus ends their written piece with the idea that a coup against Putin is now practically impossible.  On that, I readily agree.  But I'll go one step further....I think in the next couple of weeks....you will start to notice various government officials showing up in Turkey, Finland, and Kazakhstan....asking western countries for asylum.  As each group disappears out of Moscow.....the crew left around Putin will be put under intense pressure.