Putin Is Becoming a Risk to His Elites - Jason Jay Smart [View all]

Putin's inner circle no longer trusts him. Jason Smart breaks down why Kremlin elites no longer feel protected, why Vladimir Putin is starting to look like a liability to the people who once depended on him, and why the most dangerous threat to the regime may now be inside the Kremlin itself. This is no longer only a story about the front lines in the Ukraine war. It is also a story about fear, mistrust, and political survival at the very top of the Russian system.

From rising anxiety around Valdai and falling trust inside Russia to recruitment shortfalls, war losses, and widening political pressure, the old bargain of loyalty for safety is starting to break down. Putin once made the system feel stable. He once made elites believe that loyalty would bring protection, access, wealth, and survival. Now that calculation is changing. The same people who once saw him as the guarantor of order may be starting to see him as the source of growing danger.

This video examines Russian elite fracture, Kremlin instability, Putin paranoia, and the strategic consequences of a regime that can no longer fully protect its own backers. It explains why elite doubt can become more dangerous than public anger, why insiders may decide Putin now creates more risk than safety, and what that could mean for regime survival, for Moscow's next moves, and for the next phase of pressure on Russia. If the circle around Putin stops believing in him, the consequences could reach far beyond the Kremlin.

CHAPTERS:
00:00 - Intro: Putin’s Elite Power Struggle
01:47 - Hungary's Pivot: Defeating Russian Imperialism
03:44 - Operation Twilight: The Kremlin's Billionaire Revolt
06:18 - Battlefield Reality: Ukraine’s Tactical Edge
07:26 - Valdai Fortress: Putin’s Growing Paranoia
09:19 - Recruitment Crisis: The Russian Military Deficit
11:45 - Economic Decay: Putin’s Survival at Risk