Business Insider

Putin’s senior advisors are feeding him bad information about the Ukrainian invasion because they’re ‘too afraid to tell him the truth,’ a US official says

Natalie Musumeci and John Haltiwanger – March 30, 2022

• A US official told reporters Putin is being fed bad information about Russia’s war with Ukraine.
• “Putin is being misinformed by his advisors about how badly the Russian military is performing.”
• The official said the advisors are “too afraid to tell him the truth” about the failures of the war.

Russian President Vladimir Putin is likely being fed bad information by his top advisors about Russia’s more-than-month-long invasion of Ukraine because they are “too afraid to tell him the truth” about the failures of the war, a US official told reporters, including NBC News and CNN.

“We believe that Putin is being misinformed by his advisors about how badly the Russian military is performing and how the Russian economy is being crippled by sanctions, because his senior advisors are too afraid to tell him the truth,” said the official, citing declassified intelligence.

“Putin didn’t even know his military was using and losing conscripts in Ukraine, showing a clear breakdown in the flow of accurate information to the Russian president,” the official added.

The official also said the US has “information that Putin felt misled by the Russian military,” according to CNN. “There is now persistent tension between Putin and the (Ministry of Defence), stemming from Putin’s mistrust in MOD leadership,” the official added.

Western officials told reporters on Tuesday Russian elites will likely blame each other for Russia’s “disastrous progress” in its war with Ukraine.

“It’s also likely that within the Russian system various elements are going to be blaming each other for the lack of success” in Ukraine, a Western official speaking on the condition of anonymity said.

The official added, “People are going to be being quite defensive about their own failures, and I think, looking to point the finger at others.”

Additionally, that official told reporters the West is “much less certain” that Putin “is getting an honest picture on the ground” in Ukraine.

“That’s one of the reasons why Western media, Ukrainian media, is important in continuing to make sure the reality of this conflict, and how it is causing not only death and destruction to the Ukrainians, but a great deal of death to the Russian forces as well,” the official said.

Putin launched Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on February 24 with Russian troops surrounding and shelling several towns across the eastern European country, including civilian targets.

Yet despite Ukraine’s armed forces being greatly outnumbered and outgunned by Russian troops, the Ukrainians have put up a fierce resistance, resulting in a mounting Russian death toll and a largely stalled invasion.

Putin’s opponents and critics have a history of dying in violent ways or finding themselves in a Russian penal colony, which could help explain why his advisors are apparently hesitant to provide the Russian leader with accurate intel.

Russian opposition politician Boris Nemtsov, a top rival of Putin’s and Russia’s former deputy prime minister under President Boris Yeltsin, was gunned down on a bridge near the Kremlin in 2015. Nemtsov had been a vocal critic of Putin, particularly over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and annexation of Crimea in 2014.

He also worked to expose the involvement of Russian troops in a war in eastern Ukraine that began that same year. Putin had repeatedly denied that the Russian military had a presence in the Donbas region of Ukraine, despite solid evidence to the contrary.

Alexei Navalny, Putin’s most prominent critic, was poisoned with the Soviet era nerve agent Novichok in August 2020. The Russian opposition leader is now imprisoned in Russia on charges widely decried as politically motivated.

Navalny, who’s called for mass protests against Putin’s unprovoked war in Ukraine, recently had nine more years added to his sentence. The State Department ripped into Russia over the ruling, decrying it as “a disturbing decision” and “another example of the Russian government’s widening crackdown on dissent and freedom of expression, which is intended to hide the Kremlin’s brutal war, and unprovoked war against.”

Russia has gone to extraordinary lengths to quash opposition to the war in Ukraine, arresting thousands of protestors.

Putin also signed a law in early March that could potentially land Russians behind bars for up to 15 years for spreading “false information” about the war in Ukraine.

Reuters

Ships stranded in Ukraine as conflict slows UN rescue efforts

Jonathan Saul – March 29, 2022

LONDON (Reuters) – With more than 1,000 seafarers stranded on ships in Ukrainian ports and food supplies running low, the United Nations is pressing for their safe passage out of danger but security risks and disagreements are hobbling those efforts, maritime sources say.

Russia’s military took control of waterways when it invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24, in what Moscow calls a “special operation”.

Since then at least 100 foreign flagged ships with over 1,000 seafarers have been stuck inside Ukrainian ports with food supplies running low, shipping officials say.

UN shipping agency the International Maritime Organization (IMO) said this month it would seek to create a safe maritime corridor to enable merchant ships and their crews to sail out of the Black Sea and Sea of Azov without the risk of being hit.

“The IMO Secretariat is working with both Ukraine and the Russian Federation to try and assist the safe departure of the ships and their crew,” an IMO spokesperson said.

“However, at present, the ongoing security risks preclude the option for ships to depart from ports in Ukraine.”

Multiple issues including the risk of mines is complicating efforts, sources with knowledge of the situation say.

In recent days Turkish and Romanian military diving teams have been involved in defusing stray mines around their waters, underscoring the broader dangers.

“Efforts to establish these safe blue corridors are extremely challenging,” the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) said.

An ICS spokesperson added that it was trying to deliver provisions to affected vessels, “which are in grave danger of running out of food in the coming days as well as ensuring that vessels are not targeted for any kinetic strikes by any party”.

Five merchant vessels have been hit by projectiles – with one of them sunk – off Ukraine’s coast with two seafarers killed, shipping officials say.

London’s marine insurance market has widened the area of waters it considers high risk in the region.

In a circular letter issued to the IMO on Monday, Russia said it had established a humanitarian maritime corridor starting from March 27 “with the aim of ensuring safe passage” from the Ukrainian ports of Chernomorsk, Kherson, Mykolaiv, Ochakov, Odesa and Yuzhne.

Russia said the corridor, which would operate daily, represented an 80-mile long and 3-mile wide marine traffic lane from the assembly area.

“The Russian side calls on competent authorities of the Ukraine to provide for the safety and security of the merchant vessels and their crews transition to the assembly area,” it said in the circular.

Ukraine’s Maritime Administration is aware of Russia’s announcement, its deputy head Victor Vyshnov said, which was first made by Russian warships to commercial ships last week.

The IMO spokesperson said its Secretariat had circulated Russia’s communication.

But Vyshnov said any boundaries for the corridor announced by Russia had not been agreed by Ukraine.

“This is just a new sign of Russian propaganda,” he told Reuters.

“Due to the ongoing aggression against Ukraine, and Russian mine-laying activities at sea, no one can guarantee shipping safety in this region.”

Vyshnov said there were preconditions for the safe evacuation of ships.

“Russia must fully stop the hostilities, withdraw its troops and ensure the freedom and safety of navigation in the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov, including by carrying out mine-sweeping or allowing other littoral states to do this job,” he said.

(Reporting by Jonathan Saul; editing by Jason Neely)

HuffPost

Tucker Carlson Goes Big On Protecting Putin With Bizarre Warning

Josephine Harvey – March 29, 2022

Fox News host Tucker Carlson offered a warning on Monday about the repercussions of removing Russian President Vladimir Putin from power, and suggested that Islamic extremists would somehow get hold of the country’s nuclear weapons and use them on Americans.

“So, Russia has a large and restive population of Islamic extremists. Do we think it’s possible that with no one running the country ― because of course we have no chosen successor to Putin ― is it possible, if we did that, that one of those 6,000 nuclear weapons might wind up in the hands of some anti-American terror group and be used against our civilian population here?” he asked. “A nuclear weapon! Well, it’s not just possible, it’s likely.”

Carlson has made a habit of defending Putin, even after the Russian dictator made moves to invade Ukraine. Since the war began, Carlson has become a favorite for rebroadcasts on Russian propaganda channels for blaming President Joe Biden for the invasion, parroting Kremlin propaganda and spreading conspiracy theories justifying the invasion of Ukraine.

Earlier this month, a Mother Jones report revealed a leaked Kremlin memo that directed Russian state-sponsored media to use Carlson’s broadcasts “as much as possible” due to his criticism of the U.S. and NATO and defense of Putin.

Carlson’s scaremongering comments were in response to a speech Biden made in Poland, where he said of Putin: “For God’s sake, this man cannot remain in power.”

White House officials promptly clarified that the remark did not reflect a change in U.S. policy and that Biden was not advocating for regime change in Russia, but that Putin “cannot be allowed to exercise power over his neighbors or the region.”

Other than Carlson, the off-script remark was also blasted by foreign policy experts who warned it was dangerous and would play into Putin’s narrative.

Should Putin lose his grasp on power in Russia, or be assassinated, he would likely be succeeded by another member of the Kremlin elite.

The Wrap

Boxer Vladimir Klitschko Condemns Tucker Carlson and Others Opposing Ukraine Aid: ‘Blood Is on Your Hands’

Harper Lambert – March 28, 2022

Olympic gold medalist and former heavyweight champion boxer Wladimir Klitschko made a strong statement against conservative pundits who don’t believe America should lend support to Ukraine against the Russian invasion.

He spoke out during a Monday appearance on Newsmax TV’s “The Balance.” When host Eric Bolling asked Klitschko about American conservatives – such as Tucker Carlson and Candace Owens – who believe the U.S. should take an isolationist stance on the war, he replied that there’s blood on the hands of anyone who doesn’t stand with Ukraine.

“If you passively observe what is going on, and we do share the same principles of freedom and democratic principles, like the United States, like the Western world, so to speak,” Klitschko said. “If you are passively observing, you are part of this invasion. Blood is on your hands, too.”

He continued, “If you still have business and trade with Russia, and you don’t isolate Russia economically, you’re bringing bullets and rockets into the Russian army’s hands that kills, today, the innocent.”

Earlier in the segment, Klitschko – who is the younger brother of Kyiv’s mayor, Vitali Klitschko – insisted that Ukraine would remain strong and persevere through the attack.

“We’re going to win this war, we’re going to defend our country, our homes our families, and our children,” he told Bolling. “Ukraine is a free nation and we will stand with it.”

Since Russia invaded Ukraine in late February, Carlson and Owens have echoed Vladimir Putin’s justification of its military action as “self-defense.” Carlson has repeatedly aired a conspiracy theory stating that the U.S. has secret bioweapons labs in Ukraine on his television show. Owens pins the blame for the war on the United States, supporting Putin’s claim that Russia was defending itself against the eastward expansion of NATO.

Currently, the Russian army continues its attack on Ukraine’s forces in the east. Peace talks are scheduled to take place this week in Turkey between Putin and Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

Yahoo! Finance

US lawmakers have a new idea for what to do with seized Russian assets

Ben Werschkul, Senior Producer and Writer – March 29, 2022

Those sanctioned Russian assets are piling up.

Oligarch yachts, estates, planes, and other items in the West may sit out of their owners’ hands — but they are not yet necessarily in the control of Western governments.

The rules vary across Europe where most of the seizures have taken place following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24. The White House recently offered examples of assets that have been taken off the table and noted some had been seized while others were impounded. Under U.S. law, any sanctioned assets would be in a state of legal limbo and put aside, but could eventually be returned to their owners.

Now policymakers in the U.S. — both on Capitol Hill and perhaps in the administration — are pushing to change the uncertain status of those assets around the world. Some want to not just take possession of the assets of Kremlin-connected billionaires, but also sell them and give the proceeds to Ukraine.

As Senator Rob Portman (R OH) recently put it on the Senate floor, we should be expanding sanctions and “seizing, not just freezing, assets from Kremlin supporters” alongside other measures.

Portman and Sen. Michael Bennet (D-CO) have introduced a bill, the RELIEF for Ukraine Act, which directs any funds from seized Russian assets towards Ukrainian refugees, reconstruction, and other efforts.

‘We have far further to go to fully address this threat’

President Joe Biden pledged to seize the “ill-begotten gains” of Russian oligarchs during his State of the Union Address on March 1. During a speech Tuesday in London, Deputy Treasury Secretary Wally Adeyemo outlined how the U.S. government and its allies may go further in sanctioning Russian individuals.

Adeyemo, who’s in Europe to shore up alliances, touted the work to “share information and intelligence and to facilitate the enforcement of our sanctions, namely to freeze and seize assets of sanctioned individuals.”

“We have far further to go to fully address this threat and restore justice for the people of Ukraine,” Adeymo added, without saying where the assets could go.

Adeyemo also noted that the West may sanction those who help Russian oligarchs hide their assets.

‘Our bill makes Putin and Russian oligarchs pay the price’

The intentions of the bill from Portman and Bennet are clear: If enacted, it would create a new Ukraine Relief Fund administered by the Department of State.

“Our bill makes Putin and Russian oligarchs pay the price by ensuring that funds from their seized assets go directly to the Ukrainian people to support them through many difficult years ahead of resettlement, reconstruction, and recovery,” Bennet said in a statement.

To be sure, Ukraine could use the extra money.

Ukraine’s economy minister, Yulia Svyrydenko, recently said the war in Ukraine has cost her country $564.9 billion by damaging infrastructure and hindering economic growth. However, the oligarchs may be able to easily compensate for those losses. An oft-cited 2017 paper from the National Bureau of Economic Research estimated Russian oligarch wealth and came to the startling conclusion that rich Russians held around $800 billion in assets outside of Russia, as of 2015.

Or to put it more starkly: “There is as much financial wealth held by rich Russians abroad — in the United Kingdom, Switzerland, Cyprus, and similar offshore centers — than held by the entire Russian population in Russia itself,” Filip Novokmet, Thomas Piketty, and Gabriel Zucman wrote.

In the end, any action would likely take place under the umbrella of a recently formed multinational task force that includes the U.S. That would allow Western governments to work together to track and allocate the assets, which so far have been found largely in Europe.

Ben Werschkul is a writer and producer for Yahoo Finance in Washington, DC.