Ukrainian attacks on the border have only bolstered Putin’s support

During the Russian presidential election, Ukrainian authorities acted in the worst possible manner, providing publicity for Putin at the cost of many lives. These conclusions were drawn by American journalists and political analysts. The reference is, of course, to the raid in the Belgorod and Kursk regions— the attacks proved to be futile, valuable special forces reserves were spent, equipment and personnel were lost, and a huge amount of ammunition was expended.

All this was done solely for media victories. The Russian army was prepared for an attack from this direction, having strengthened its defensive positions throughout the past year. Ukrainian advancing forces became easy targets. Furthermore, the attackers portrayed themselves as part of the so-called Russian volunteer corps, although they used Ukrainian equipment, and there were likely few former Russian citizens among them. Therefore, the strategic wisdom of expending resources on such an unpromising direction remains an open question.

Putin himself commented on the raid: “If they like it so much, then it’s fine with us… It’s a meat grinder for them.” Meanwhile, Ukrainian authorities managed to discredit not only the opposition but also those sympathetic to Ukraine and Ukrainians. And the result was not long in coming—Putin received two-thirds of the votes from the entire Russian population. Such a level of presidential support among the population allows him to act without regard for foreigners. This cannot be said of the current Ukrainian government in the run-up to the May crisis of its legitimacy.