Putin is trying to shift responsibility for the situation in Kursk region to Russian military and officials - ISW

Russian President Vladimir Putin continues to present himself as an effective leader who allegedly knows how to fix the 'situation' in the Kursk region, namely, he shifts responsibility for the current problems in responding to the Ukrainian offensive in the area to the Russian military and government officials.

The Kremlin has published footage of the dictator publicly criticizing his subordinates, and this is his warning to others to refrain from commenting on such a defeat for Russia. This was pointed out by analysts at the Institute for the Study of War (ISW).

Thus, on August 12, Putin held a meeting with Russian military, security forces, and federal and regional officials on the situation in Belgorod, Bryansk and Kursk regions, during which he set them tasks and offered his assessment of the political situation around the Ukrainian offensive.

He reprimanded the acting governor of Kursk region, Alexey Smirnov, for speaking out on issues that the Kremlin leader considers to be exclusively within the competence of the Defense Ministry. He instructed the official to speak only about the socio-economic situation in the region.

The dictator also responded to First Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov's statement that "all other issues are under control," noting that he did not address several key social issues. Belgorod region Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov directly asked Putin to implement certain social measures to help the civilian population of Belgorod region, but he and his colleague from Bryansk Oblast, Alexander Bogomaz, avoided the dictator's wrath by not commenting on military issues.

According to analysts, Putin's assertion that every official has only one duty contrasts with his attempt to portray himself as one able to control and competently understand the political, socio-economic, and military situation along the international border.

"The Kremlin has published footage and text of the reports of the heads of Bryansk, Belgorod, and Kursk regions to Putin on the problems currently befalling Russian regional authorities, probably to publicly present them as responsible for these problems and in need of the Russian president's help. At the same time, he did not publish the moments from the part of the meeting where Russian military and security officials reported to Putin," the ISW report says.

Experts say that these Kremlin publications send a clear message to other Russian officials to refrain from commenting on the Kremlin's decision-making and operations to repel Ukrainian troops from Russia and mitigate related civilian problems.

On August 8, the Russian opposition outlet Verstka reported, citing a source close to the Federation Council's Defense Committee, that the Kremlin leader's administration had recommended that Russian MPs and senators not comment on the events near Kursk "until a special order" or discuss them as briefly as possible and refer only to official statements.

"Putin and senior Russian military and security officials are trying to control official statements about the situation in the Kursk region and prevent internal discontent that could threaten the stability of the Kremlin," ISW said.

They also note that Putin has delegated overlapping tasks to the Defense Ministry, FSB, and Rosgvardia in the area of the Ukrainian-Russian border, once again emphasizing how the grouping of Russian troops in Kursk region is struggling to establish the joint command and control structures necessary to coordinate operations. The dictator offered several assessments of the Ukrainian offensive near Kursk, including one that undermined the Kremlin's longstanding information operation that falsely portrays Ukraine as unwilling to engage in legitimate, good faith negotiations and one that shifts the burden of "peaceful dialogue" to Kyiv.

As reported, the day before, dictator Putin told Russians that the country's army was trying to "drive the enemy out" of the Kursk region and boasted that despite these events, the pace of its offensive on the Ukrainian soil had "increased by 1.5 times." At the same time, the war criminal demanded that his officials provide reliable protection of the border with Ukraine.

Only verified information on our Telegram channel OBOZ.UA and Viber. Do not fall for fakes!