Russia-Ukraine war: West says Putin ‘being misled’ by advisers
Al JazeeraUS, UK and European officials say Russia’s leader is being ‘misinformed’ about his military’s poor performance in Ukraine. Russian President Vladimir Putin is being misled by advisers who are “afraid to tell him the truth” about the Russian military’s performance in Ukraine, Western officials have said, claiming that some soldiers were refusing to carry out orders and even sabotaging their equipment. Speaking to reporters on Wednesday, White House Communications Director Kate Bedingfield said the US believes “Putin is being misinformed about how badly the Russian military is performing and how the Russian economy is being crippled by sanctions because his senior advisers are too afraid to tell him the truth”. The intelligence findings also indicate that Putin is now aware of the situation on information coming to him and this has resulted in “persistent tension” between the Russian leader and his military leadership, she said. The findings demonstrate a “clear breakdown in the flow of accurate information” to Putin, and show that Putin’s senior advisers are “afraid to tell him the truth,” the official said, adding that the Biden administration is hopeful that divulging the finding could help prod Putin to reconsider his options in Ukraine.