Russian President Vladimir Putinʼs entourage avoids telling him bad news, so he is systematically misinformed about the course of the war.
The Wall Street Journal writes about it.
Russian intelligence and officials have said that Putin has a "very limited understanding of the real state of affairs." Every morning he receives a written report on the situation at the front. The report is prepared in such a way as to highlight the successes and minimize the failures. In addition, the information in the reports is usually late, as it is previously "processed" by the special services.
Sources told the publication that Putinʼs closest entourage supports his belief in Russiaʼs victory, despite the human and economic losses. At the same time, a number of American officials told the WSJ that it is becoming increasingly difficult to find interlocutors in Putinʼs circle who are able to adequately perceive reality. At the same time, a number of people close to Putin (for example, FSB chief Nikolay Patrushev) are even more radical than their leader.
In addition, according to interlocutors, Putin and his entourage are fully convinced of the correctness of their worldview, according to which the goal of almost the entire world is the destruction or enslavement of Russia.
The WSJ believes that in such a situation, it is difficult to hope for any significant change in the position of the Kremlin under the pressure of military defeats in Ukraine or the deterioration of the economic and social situation in Russia.