Petr Pavel: Putin is in a panic about being killed and does not know the truth about the war

Isolation and fear for his own life

Czech President Petr Pavel revealed details of the psychological state of Russia's leadership in a conversation with the publication BILD. According to him, Vladimir Putin lives in constant anxiety, fearing an attempt on his life. This fear forces him to trust only a narrow circle of individuals.

“Він мало кому довіряє. Ба більше, у нього майже нав’язливий страх бути вбитим. А якщо його оточує лише обмежена кількість людей, вони цілком можуть фільтрувати інформацію, яку хочуть йому донести” (He trusts very few people. Moreover, he has an almost obsessive fear of being killed. And if he is surrounded by only a limited number of people, they can quite possibly filter the information they want to convey to him), — Pavel emphasised.

Information filter for the Russian leader

The Czech leader is convinced that Putin's entourage systematically hides the truth about the war in Ukraine from him. The President of Czechia believes that Putin may still believe in the successes of his army, relying on distorted reports from the military command.

“Я вважаю, що він досі переконаний, імовірно, навіть на підставі доповідей свого військового керівництва, що операція йде добре. [...] Думаю, у кількох аспектах його дезінформують” (I believe that he is still convinced, probably even based on reports from his military leadership, that the operation is going well. [...] I think he is being fed disinformation in several aspects), — Pavel added.

Exhaustion of the aggressor's resources

Pavel drew attention to the massive losses of Russian troops. In September alone, the Russian army lost approximately 50,000 servicemen who were killed or wounded. The rate of recruiting new conscripts does not allow the aggressor to compensate for these losses.

“Я вважаю, що ресурси росії теж виснажені, особливо після такого затяжного конфлікту, який триває вже набагато довше, ніж Друга світова війна. Соціальна ситуація там справді погана, економічна ситуація дуже плачевна” (I believe that Russia's resources are also exhausted, especially after such a protracted conflict, which has been going on for much longer than the Second World War. The social situation there is really bad, the economic situation is very dire), — he stated.

Prospects for ending hostilities

At the same time, the Czech President does not expect a quick end to hostilities under current conditions. In his assessment, the war may last for an indefinite time, as neither side is winning.

“За таких темпів війна триватиме нескінченно, тому що жодна зі сторін не перемагає. Це своєрідна сучасна Перша світова з зоною смерті, де практично немає руху” (At such a pace, the war will last forever, because neither side is winning. It is a kind of modern First World War with a death zone where there is virtually no movement), — Pavel explained.