Putin ‘directly confronted by member of his inner circle over Ukraine war’

Vladimir Putin has been facing one of his inner circles over his handling of the failing war in Ukraine, US intelligence has said.

The insider complained to Putin about “mismanagement of the war effort” and “mistakes” made by those running the campaign, it is alleged.

It is the clearest indication yet of rebellion among the Russian elite over the war and the first evidence that Putin was directly involved in it.

Meanwhile, Russian businessmen with ties to Moscow’s political class described the situation in the Kremlin as a “breaking point” and said clashes would soon break out if the tide of war continues to flow towards Ukraine.

The news came after Ukraine took a string of battlefield victories over Russia, forcing Putin to announce a highly unpopular mobilization to fortify the frontline, annex occupied territories and threaten anyone who intervenes with nuclear weapons.

A Russian tank explodes after being hit by mortar fire somewhere in Ukraine as Putin’s forces are driven back in the north and south of the country

The information was contained in a security note sent to President Joe Biden and shared with other senior officials before it was leaked to the… Washington Post.

While the Post does not list the name of the person who confronted Putin, it adds that the name was included in the briefing that Biden and others were shown.

The Post spoke to members of Russia’s business elite separately to get their impressions and was told that – although officials are not yet openly in revolt – discontent has nearly reached boiling point.

Dmitry Peskov, Putin’s spokesman, was asked about reports that an official had confronted Putin and flatly denied that there had been any kind of challenge.

He acknowledged that there were disagreements at the highest level, but tried to play them off as ‘working arguments’.

“Some think we should act differently, but this is all part of the usual work process,” he said.

Putin is now in the eighth month of his war in Ukraine and has not achieved any of the goals he set for himself in the beginning.

An ambitious shock-and-awe attack on Kiev turned into a spectacular failure as Russian troops met stiff resistance, ran aground and were picked.

A Ukrainian soldier inspects a destroyed convoy of vehicles believed to have been used by Russian troops trying to flee the city of Izyum, which has since taken Kiev

A Ukrainian flag flies over a destroyed house near Izyum after it was liberated by Kiev’s men

After suffering heavy casualties in some of their most elite units, Putin’s generals ordered a retreat, announcing that their real aim was to capture the Donbas, Ukraine’s eastern industrial heartland.

Over the summer, Russian troops managed to capture Luhansk Oblast, but they only partially occupied Donetsk – together they form the Donbas.

As the offensive slowed there, Ukraine launched two counter-offensives: one in the south towards the city of Kherson and another in the north near Kharkov.

Both have paid dividends. In Kharkiv, Ukraine managed to drive out Russian troops who had fled in chaos – incurring heavy casualties and leaving behind large amounts of equipment and ammunition.

According to recent estimates, Russia is now Ukraine’s largest arms supplier, thanks in large part to that offensive, overshadowing all other allies combined.

In Kherson, the advance was slower and more expensive, but this week saw a breach of the Russian lines causing troops to fall back some 20 miles.

Unlike the disorderly withdrawal from Kharkiv, this withdrawal was more orderly and accompanied by fewer losses – both in men and equipment – ​​but it is still a much-needed victory for Ukraine.

Putin claims to have annexed four Ukrainian regions that his forces occupy at least in part, but they are currently being pushed back into three of them

The Kiev men have also pushed forward from Kharkov to neighboring Donetsk and Luhansk, taking a handful of cities in the former and threatening a major highway in the latter.

In response, Putin has annexed four regions that his forces currently occupy, declaring that any attack on them is an attack on Russia itself.

Such an attack, he has strenuously hinted, could trigger retaliation from Russia’s nuclear arsenal. Putin also made a thinly veiled nuclear threat to the West.

He has also ordered that 300,000 men be enlisted in the armed forces, using Russia’s military reserves – although there is evidence that the net is much larger than that.

The move proved highly unpopular, sparking protests across the country and causing more than 370,000 men to seek refuge in neighboring countries such as Finland, Georgia, Kazakhstan and Mongolia.