"Or they'll poison him": US expert believes he knows the red line for Putin's orbit

Created: 01/15/2023, 12:08 p.m

By: Franziska Schwarz

Picture taken on January 13: Vladimir Putin © Sergei Bobylev/Imago

An American history professor is certain that if Putin loses the annexed Crimea, it could not only mean political death for him.

New York - There are many forecasts for the course of the Ukraine war.

As well as speculation about the Kremlin chief's political plans.

Recent statements by a history professor have now attracted a lot of attention: Giving up Crimea would be the "greatest defeat" for Vladimir Putin, Michael Kimmage told

.

"Crimea is the most dangerous aspect of the Ukraine war, without a doubt," the Jan. 13 article quoted him as saying.

For Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy it is "crystal clear" that the annexed peninsula must go back to his country.

For Putin, on the other hand, that the area is Russian.

"Only one can win.

That raises the bar.”

Putin and a possible Crimean defeat: "He would face the oligarchs"

Because if Moscow had to give Crimea back, that would not only be the end for Putin politically, Kimmage was convinced:

“He would face generals and his government and the oligarchs demanding his resignation.

Or they poison him, or someone shoots him, as is customary in Russia when there is a change of power.”

Vladimir Putin: The political career of the Russian head of state in pictures

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According to Kimmage, a defeat in Crimea in the Ukraine war would give Russia the impression "that he is not in control of things".

Other experts interviewed for the

article expressed similar sentiments.

In 2014, Russia annexed Crimea after an internationally unrecognized referendum.

Even then there were sometimes violent separatist movements in the Donbass, where the relationship with Russia is traditionally closer than in the West.

The government in Kyiv has announced that it wants to recapture the peninsula.

A chronology of the Ukraine conflict can be found here.

In the summer, several massive explosions shook Crimea.

Last month, the Kremlin chief then visited the Crimean bridge, which had been repaired. Observers rated Putin's appearance in the Mercedes as a PR appointment with which he wanted to set an example.