Putin is preparing Russians for ’war that never ends’ - Guardian
On the eve of the New Year, Vladimir Putin’s spokesman Dmytro Peskov told a narrow circle of the Russian elite that Russia’s war against Ukraine "will take a very, very long time."
This is reported by Censor.NET with reference to The Guardian.
According to the publication, at the end of December 2022, representatives of the Russian cultural and political elite gathered for dinner in the apartment of a high-ranking official. It was at this event that Peskov made a toast.
"I suppose you expect me to say something," he said, according to one of two people who spoke separately to the Guardian about the evening on condition of anonymity.
"Everything will become much more complicated. It will take a very, very long time," Peskov continued.
His toast spoiled the mood of the evening among the guests, many of whom in private conversations declared that they were against the war in Ukraine. "It was unpleasant to listen to his speech. It was clear that he warned that the war will remain with us and we must prepare for the long term," said one of the guests.
The publication cites examples of later actions of the Russian authorities that correspond to the stated words of Peskov. Recently, in a long conversation with the workers of the aircraft factory in Buryatia, Putin again called the war an existential battle for the survival of Russia.
According to political scientist Maksym Trudolyubov, this repeated the pattern of recent speeches, in which Putin increasingly turned to discussing what observers called an "eternal war" with the West.
"Putin practically stopped talking about any specific goals of the war. He also does not offer a vision of what a future victory might look like. The war has neither a clear beginning nor a predictable end," Trudolyubov said.
During his State of the Nation address last month, Putin repeated some of the many grudges he holds against the West, stressing that Moscow is fighting for national survival and will ultimately win.
Trudolyubov said the thinly veiled message to the people was that the war in Ukraine was not going to end anytime soon and that Russians had to learn to live with it.
Western officials believe that with his speeches, the Russian leader is intensifying the war and leaving little room for retreat.
One Western diplomat in Moscow called Putin's statement a preparation of the Russian public for a "war that never ends."
The diplomat also noted that it is unclear whether Putin can accept defeat in the conflict, as he does not seem to "understand how to lose."
The source noted that Putin does not appear to be reconsidering the conflict, despite heavy losses and setbacks last year. The diplomat noted that the Russian president was a former KGB operative and said that they are trained to always continue to pursue their goals, not to overestimate the goals in the first place.
Others noted that the Russian leader, who, according to Western intelligence, personally makes operational and tactical decisions in Ukraine, stopped discussing the situation on the front in Ukraine in his public comments.
