New space to criticise Putin without fear of retribution being carved out in Russia

The Institute for the Study of War (ISW) believes that a new space to criticise Russian President Vladimir Putin is being carved out in Russia. Those responsible appear to have no fear of retribution.

Source: ISW report from 18 January 2023

Details: Wagner Group financier Yevgeny Prigozhin is becoming increasingly bold in his verbal attacks against the Russian Ministry of Defense (MoD).

Prigozhin criticised the MoD’s new guidelines for Russian troops in Ukraine that restrict the use of certain personal electronic devices in combat zones and set stricter guidelines for men’s grooming standards on 18 January.

Prigozhin defended Russian line soldiers who do not adhere to grooming standards (he observed that beards are customary for many Muslim and Orthodox Christian fighters) and claimed that soldiers’ use of smartphones and tablets is necessary for modern warfare.

He stated that "war is the time of the active and courageous, and not of the clean-shaven who turned in phones to the warehouse."

Prigozhin further criticised "out-of-touch" Russian MoD officials and directly attacked President Putin’s presidential administration.

According to the ISW assessment, Prigozhin and other voices in Russia are creating a new space to criticise the Russian president without fear of retribution.

Key Takeaways from the ISW report:

• Russian President Vladimir Putin’s speech commemorating the siege of Leningrad continued to illustrate that Putin remains uncertain about his ability to significantly shape the Russian information space.
• Putin’s speech is likely part of a larger informational effort to wrap the "special military operation" inside the greater Russian national mythos of the Great Patriotic War (World War II) to increase Russian support for a protracted war and mobilisation.
• Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov augmented these efforts to increase Russian support for a protracted war by explicitly and ludicrously claiming that Ukraine and the West are pursuing the genocide of the Russian people.
• Putin continues efforts to reinvigorate Russia’s defence industrial base to support a protracted war in Ukraine.
• Putin and Lavrov continue to deny Ukrainian sovereignty and outright reject direct negotiations with Ukraine.
• Wagner Group financier Yevgeny Prigozhin is becoming increasingly bold in his verbal attacks against the Russian Ministry of Defense and the Kremlin.
• Prigozhin and other notable voices in Russia are carving out a new space to criticise Russian President Vladimir Putin without fear of retribution.
• Russian forces continued limited counterattacks to regain lost positions near Kreminna.
• Russian forces continued offensive operations near Soledar, Bakhmut, Avdiivka, and the city of Donetsk.
• The Russian Ministry of Defense continues to attempt to downplay the role of the Wagner Group in claimed tactical advances in the Soledar area.
• Ukrainian officials have indicated that Russian forces are concentrating in Zaporizhzhia Oblast, possibly for a large defensive or offensive effort.
• Russian forces’ increasing use of incendiary munitions to conduct what appear to be otherwise routine strikes in southern Ukraine supports ISW’s recent assessment that Russian forces likely face a shortage of conventional artillery rounds.
• Ukrainian and Russian sources continued to indicate that Russian authorities are likely preparing for a second wave of mobilisation.

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