The Economist: Putin fears ending the war without victory. ‘They will hang me,’ he reportedly told his inner circle.

The Economist reports that Russian President Vladimir Putin fears for his own safety should the war end without Russia capturing all of Donbas, citing sources close to him who say he once told his inner circle, “They will hang me.” No context for the remark was provided. The outlet describes discontent rising among ordinary Russians and an even grimmer mood among elites, with one source noting the core failure isn't the economy or battlefield performance but nearly five wasted years.

Sources describe continuing the war on its current trajectory as disadvantageous to the Kremlin, burning economic resources and political capital with no clear resolution. The article's authors, while acknowledging nobody knows Putin's actual thinking, speculate he is driven by a regime logic that treats any sign of weakness as fatal.

Western intelligence, per the report, expects Russia may respond to this bind by escalating rather than retreating — intensifying hybrid warfare, sabotage against Ukraine's allies, and strikes on factories supplying Ukraine's military, though a direct NATO confrontation is considered unlikely. Russia's Defense Ministry has already signaled preparations for renewed mass strikes on Ukraine's energy grid.

The full dispatch is available from the source below.