Vladimir Putin liked the fact that in 2014 he was able to annex the Crimean peninsula, which caused his popularity among Russians to skyrocket. However, after 5 years, the dictator's chair began to stagger. That is why the head of the Kremlin began to think about how to win back the support of the majority. This was told by the former deputy of the State Duma of the Russian Federation, Russian opposition politician Gennady Gudkov.

“By 2019, he lost the majority's support and began thinking about what to do to return this support. This issue can also be attributed to the fact that Ukraine was gaining momentum: it began to catch up and overtake Russia in terms of quality of life and income. Putin was also offended for 2014 (Revolution of Dignity), he is very vindictive and petty," Gudkov said on the air of the FreeDom TV channel.

According to him, vindictiveness, combined with a desire to consolidate his power as quickly and effectively as possible, pushed Putin to launch a full-scale war against Ukraine.

“He thought that with one hit, he could solve three problems. The first one would increase my rating. The second one would destroy the good life of Ukrainians. And the third one would become the winner in history and take revenge for 2014. And it was impossible to convince him not to do this. He crushed everyone there and broke through the knee. That's why Putin did what he did: he started a completely insane war, which from the very beginning became a disaster and defeat for him," Gudkov noted.

The oppositionist also noted that the struggle for influence in Russia continues in the Russian elites. However, according to Gudkov, even this fades into the background. Now Russian officials are increasingly asking each other the question: "What to do next?".