Russian President Vladimir Putin has barely appeared in public since the New Year, and has notably refrained from commenting on Venezuela and Iran.

What Putin’s refusal to comment on events in Venezuela and Iran says about his strategy in Ukraine? 🧵 Publicly distancing Putin from “negative” events—even outright ignoring them—is a long-standing Kremlin tactic. During Russia’s New Year holidays (which lasted from December 31 through January 11), Putin was only shown live on one occasion—attending a church service on January 7 (Orthodox Christmas).

🪖Talk of a second mobilization wave in Russia has been on everyone’s lips in recent weeks. We spoke to several government sources to try and get a sense of the Kremlin’s plans. Here's what we've learned ⬇️ Despite the December rumors about a second mobilization, our sources told us that they were yet to see any sign that this was around the corner. And — as we now know — they were correct2⃣

Do Russians support the war in Ukraine? This question has been discussed intensely since the invasion in Feb.

Russian officials have access to much more info on attitudes than is ever released. We obtained access to the previously unpublished data shorturl.at/oqrzP 🧵 After nine months of war in Ukraine, fewer Russians believe Putin did the right thing by starting the conflict — 60% as of Nov. 17. This is still a majority, but it’s at its lowest level in 6 months and has dropped 10 pp since spring. /2 datawrapper.de/_/DCKkh/

Is Putin rational or not? His latest decisions prove that he is - ofc in terms of his peculiar goals. In the thick of the fighting in Ukraine, Putin is effectively carrying out political reforms and restructuring his power vertical — in an attempt to win the war. 1/ In mid-October Putin handed special powers to regional authorities across Russia and created an influential new government body that is charged with coordinating supplies to the military. 2/

So here's a thread about how Putin pumped money into Russia’s army for more than two decades. In 21 years under Putin, Russia has spent more than $1.1 trillion on the military instead of healthcare, education and other peaceful needs 1/14 faridaily.substack.com/p/how-putin-pu… The beginning of Putin's rule was marked by the tragic events of the 2 Chechen War and the sinking of the Kursk. For the latter, P put the responsibility on the collapsed army (and btw also on journalists). Since then, a new chapter in the history of the Russian army begins 2/14

so yesterday @ParisMatch reported that Vladimir Putin travels abroad with a special 💩 suitcase. according to the journalists, Putin's guards collect his stools in bags and deliver them to Moscow. but as far as I know this peculiar system is arranged somewhat differently /1 2/ at least sometimes all secret substances are being destroyed immediately on the spot. and it was first reported to the world by a rather unexpected source - by
@VeepHBO Julia Louis-Dreyfus on The Late Show in 2020

I had the honour of writing an op-ed for the @nytimes. dedicated to the great dissident Valeria Novodvorskaya, who foresaw so much about today. propaganda portrayed her as crazy, but she was right about many things nytimes.com/2022/05/23/opi… In 1994 in her famous controversial article called "Russia №6" she wrote that since the 16th century we have existed according to the laws of manic-depressive psychosis, which a hundred years later has become a national character

охренеть, какая молодец анонимный источник ТАСС угрожает девушке административным делом

@Visa @Mastercard sanctioning Putin, his inner circle and Russian officials is a good thing which should have been done much earlier. But suspending all Russia operations now you punish people who fled the country because of the threat of political prosecution by Putin’s regime I’m talking about numerous independent journalists, members of the opposition, political activists, and common people who dared to oppose the war. We had to leave the country within days. And most of us don’t have foreign bank accounts yet