Putin’s Cronies Turn on Russian Elite in Paranoid War Frenzy
The Daily BeastDec 19, 2022
Day 300: Putin Tells Security Services to Root Out 'Traitors and Spies'
Image copyright: Reuters [via Al Jazeera]
The Facts
Speaking on Monday, which also saw the celebration of Russia's Security Services Day across the country, Pres. Vladimir Putin ordered the strengthening of Russia's borders and called on his intelligence agencies to maximize use of their "operational, technical, and personnel potential." This was followed by comments made by Putin on Tuesday, suggesting the organizations should step up measures to root out "traitors, spies and saboteurs."
Referring to the regions of Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson, and Zaporizhzhia — which Russia claimed to have annexed in September despite Western countries arguing that the annexations were illegitimate — Putin described the situation there as "extremely difficult." He also claimed that: "people living there, Russian citizens, hold out hope for you, for your protection."
The Spin
Anti-Russia narrative
Putin knows Russia is losing the war and is panicking. The Russian leader is clearly paranoid and believes anyone who wants to promote peace is a spy or traitor. Russian propagandists may argue that the country is operating from a position of strength, but they are shaking in their boots.
Pro-Russia narrative
NATO and the US — which have ignored Russia's security concerns by breaking its promise not to expand eastward in return for German reunification — are coordinating to impose their dominance, and Putin, knowing what’s at stake, is taking the lead to make sure his security leaders do too.
Nerd narrative
There is a 95% chance that Vladimir Putin will be the president of the Russian Federation by February 1, 2023, according to the Metaculus prediction community.
