In recent days, Russian President Vladimir Putin has been remarkably silent on the situation in the Kursk region, where Ukrainian troops are actively expanding their zone of control. Since the last public discussion of the issue, which took place on August 12 during a meeting with military officials and governors, Putin has made no statement on the matter.
URA-Inform reports on whether Putin is plotting revenge, citing The Moscow Times.
The ignoring of the situation in the Kursk region has some people worried. According to The Moscow Times, Putin's silence indicates his confusion or desire to hide the scale of the crisis. Political scientist Abbas Gallyamov comments on the situation as follows:
“It is obvious to Russians that the president cares more about the problems of the Palestinians and the victims of the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict than about the plight of the residents of the Kursk region.”
Mark Galeotti, an analyst at the Royal United Services Institute, notes that Putin's behavior is nothing new. He recalls that during crises, such as the COVID-19 outbreak, Putin also preferred to distance himself from difficult situations. This has become his characteristic trait: he tends to avoid personal intervention in difficult moments, delegating the solution of problems to others.
Recall that at the last meeting on the situation in the Kursk region, Putin expressed demands to “squeeze the enemy” out of Russian territory and blamed the West for what happened. He also promised to give a “worthy response” to the Ukrainian troops, which at that time had advanced 25 kilometers from the border. But after this, there was no specific revenge or other obvious steps from Putin.
It is worth paying special attention to the fact that Syrsky addressed Zelensky with an important report on the Kursk region and Donbass.