As of: March 13, 2024, 12:26 p.m
By: Lisa Mahnke
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Before the presidential election in Russia, Putin is suddenly under pressure.
Attacks at home reveal Putin's weaknesses.
His popularity is declining.
Moscow – Shortly before the Russian elections from March 15th to 17th, President Vladimir Putin has to digest some rainfall.
Separatists are said to have taken over a location in southern Russia during the Ukraine war.
There are also several drone attacks on Russia.
"They must be worried that their own Russian soldiers cannot defend them because they are busy illegally occupying Ukraine," expert Jayson Jay Smart told
Newsweek
.
Will this reduce Putin's popularity?
“Putin's public support is based on the image that he is the pillar of stability in contrast to the wild days of the 1990s,” Smart said.
“The invasion of southern Russia is powerful evidence that Putin's ability to maintain control over Russia is far more uncertain than Putin would have us believe.” The war, which has been going on for over two years, has been portrayed by Russian propaganda as rapid special military operation depicted.
As the war continues, this image is slowly crumbling and anti-war voices are becoming louder.
“Russia is unstable,” Smart told
Newsweek
.
Tyotkino allegedly captured - separatists want to prevent elections in the border area
The pro-Ukrainian Freedom for Russia Legion now announced that it would fight in Russia.
The Legion later claimed that Tyotkino in the Kursk region had been captured.
According to
Spiegel
, former Duma deputy Ilya Ponomaryov, who lives in Ukraine, claimed something similar on his Telegram channel.
The Russian Defense Ministry, however, said the attacks by “Ukrainian terrorist groups” had been thwarted.
None of the statements could be independently confirmed.
The mayor of Kursk, Igor Kuzak, said on Tuesday, according to
CNN
, that schoolchildren would switch to online classes because of “security concerns.”
Denys Nikitin (“White Rex”), the founder and head of the RDK, said in an interview with the Ukrainian news portal
Pravda
that the volunteers would continue their operation.
“I think the fighters of the Russian Volunteer Corps will do everything to ensure that there are no elections in the regions bordering Ukraine,” Nikitin said.
Ukrainian attacks on Russia are increasing – a tactical signal before the Russian election?
The separatist attack coincides with several nightly drone attacks by Ukraine across six regions.
According to the Tass
news agency , an oil refinery, as well as buildings in Belgorod and several power lines
were hit .
The Russian Defense Ministry reported
that 58 drones were allegedly destroyed during the night and the following morning, according to
Tass .
In this context, CNN
spoke of the largest drone attack since the start of the Ukraine war.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov attributed the drone attacks
to the “continued terrorist activities of the Kiev regime,” according to
TASS .
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The drone attack was not the only one in recent days.
Tass
wrote that it was the third massive attack in the last few days.
There were also drone attacks on March 12th and March 9th.
However, these were not of the same magnitude as the attack on Wednesday night (March 13th).
Putin wins despite everything - but the signal from the pro-Ukrainian separatists is effective
“Whether they affect voter turnout is unclear, but I have no doubt that Moscow would manipulate the numbers if it did,” said Mark N. Katz, a professor at the Schar School of Policy and Government at George Mason University, told
Newsweek
.
There is basically no question that Putin will win the election, not least given the large number of allegations of election manipulation from the West.
Although it is almost clear that Putin is winning, the pressure on him seems to be increasing.
© IMAGO/Gavriil Grigorov/Russian Presidential Press and Information Office/TASS
“Perhaps more than anything, these attacks on Russian territory are intended to lift the spirits of Ukrainians who now see Russian forces gaining ground in Ukraine while vital U.S. military aid stalls in the House of Representatives,” Katz speculated.
Expert Smart gave the developments significantly more weight to
Newsweek
: “Just a few days before the sham elections in Russia, Putin suffered another humiliation with the attempted coup by Wagner Group leader Yevgeny Prigozhin and Ukraine's last attempt to send troops to Russia , is comparable.”
(lismah)