We are now aware that Putin is gravely ill....Who is calling the War now?

[FarPoint]

I don't sense Putin can make command decisions...he is too ill....So, this tells me that there are others actually pushing the War in Ukraine....thus the war is not to end with Putin's last breathe...I don't see Putin making it to September...

Who is in line for Russian Power? I don't know...so I post the question here...

[anarch]

1. a good question

I would suspect some kind of oil/gas baron, or some kind of organized crime boss (who would probably not take control in the open), or maybe another former KGB person or something? I don't know--I think Vlad might still be making decisions at this point, whether he should or not, it seems like he has a pretty totalitarian grip on the nation...does he have a "next in line" of any kind really?

[2naSalit]

2. Medvedev...

And Lavrov will be the two who will press on and attempt to take over rulership.

[Shermann]

3. The tabloid media may be "aware" of this...the MSM not so much nt

[FarPoint]

4. I agree....

It is not media profitable to actually address the facts head on....

[Shermann]

5. You could make that same claim about any questionable story the MSM doesn't pick up

How are we to differentiate between factual and fictitious omissions?

[FarPoint]

9. If one seeks out other reliable new sources............

and compares the data reports to TC/cable news cycles like CNN/MSNBC/ ABC/NBC/ CBS.... you will find gaps in essential data...

[Shermann]

17. You've merely demonstrated that factual stories not covered by the MSM exist

Few would dispute that. That, however, does not support the assertion that this particular story is factual.

I'd say wait until evidence arises which clusters around this story before giving it any further consideration.

[Hortensis]

23. Investigative media are not reporting confirmed evidence of illness.

As for suggestions like the press aren't reporting that Putin's ill because it's not profitable or that lack of reporting is itself strongly suggestive the story's true? Good grief.

Investigative media are not reporting confirmed evidence of illness because they haven't found it.

Stick a pin in it. After all, at Putin's age, serious illness is common. And beating it to live another decade or more far from uncommon.

[muriel_volestrangler]

6. I don't think you have "facts" about Putin being seriously ill

You have rumours and speculation (which is fine - the man's a monster, so it's OK to weaken him any way you can), but don't say "the media" is not spreading the rumours because that's not profitable. The non-tabloid sections of it just don't feel it's how they should act.

[BlackSkimmer]

7. I agree.

Everyone thought tfg was going to kick the bucket "any day" and that didn't pan out too well.

[FarPoint]

10. True enought....

Maybe I'm just feeling empathic today....

I can't say that I have not heard rumors and it does " feel" accurate....

I don't know who will be able to factually verify this with journalistic style....Russia is so "controlled" and our intelligence organizations are silent....

[AntiFascist]

24. This information tends to be "leaked" from the intelligence community...

where it is picked up by tabloids and some independent sources. The MSM is mainly only reporting that Russia is denying the rumors.

[PortTack]

8. Other "confirmed sources" say he has 3 yrs....who really knows

[FarPoint]

11. What the heck

My sense is he won't make it past September to November....

[Chainfire]

12. The only thing that I am aware of is that there are rumors that Putin is gravely ill.

While I would like to believe that, I will remind you of what Churchill said; “In wartime, truth is so precious that she should always be attended by a bodyguard of lies.” I will celebrate Putin's poor health when I see the state funeral on TV Moscow.

[former9thward]

13. No, we are not aware of any such things.

At this point just internet rumors with no hard evidence.

[StarryNite]

14. I'm so sorry he is gravely ill...

I wish he was dead!

[FarPoint]

22. Hahahahah

I'm with you on that one....

[Sympthsical]

15. U.S. intelligence said 3 years

Not sure that's gravely ill.

And, of course, they're probably working with incomplete information where they have to fill in with supposition and light speculation. If I had to guess (keyword: guess), they know what kind of treatment he's been getting and are extrapolating from there.

But who knows. Cancer is cancer. Patients get a prognosis for a few years, then things take a turn and they die within a month. There are no guarantees with it.

American intelligence is being pretty cautious with the speculation:

https://www.newsweek.com/exclusive-putin-treated-cancer-april-us-intelligence-report-says-1710357

All three officials—one from the office of the Director of National Intelligence, one a retired Air Force senior officer, and one from the Defense Intelligence Agency—caution that the Russian leader's isolation makes it more difficult for U.S. intelligence to precisely assess Putin's status and health.

"What we know is that there is an iceberg out there, albeit one covered in fog," says the DNI leader, who communicated with Newsweek via email and requested anonymity to discuss sensitive matters.

"One source of our best intelligence, which is contact with outsiders, largely dried up as a result of the Ukraine war," says the DIA senior official. "Putin has had few meetings with foreign leaders," the official says, cutting off the insights that can sometimes be gained in face-to-face encounters. "Putin's isolation has thus increased levels of speculation."

"We need to be mindful of the influence of wishful thinking," cautions the retired Air Force leader. "We learned—or didn't learn—that lesson the hard way with Osama bin Laden and Saddam Hussein."

[FakeNoose]

16. There's a secret cabal in Russia that has been calling the shots

They don't take credit or blame for anything. They've been telling Putin what they want done, and Pootie does it. This is how it has been all along. Once he's gone they'll find another front man. That's how kleptocracy works.

[Thunderbeast]

18. Just like Kim Jung Un?

Wasn't he on HIS deathbed two years ago?

I'll believe it when he shares a bed with Stalin in Red Square.

[Pyryck]

19. I'm not so concerned with who might follow him...

As I am concerned with what he might do if he thinks or feels his time is coming. He might just say "screw it, I'm going so I might as well take the human race and planet with me".

[BannonsLiver]

20. Source? Link?

I’m also curious who we is.

[DFW]

21. Talking to a former Moscow correspondent and a Ukrainian neighbor

I come away with two recommendations:

Do NOT assume Putin is not in full command for now, and do NOT assume he is in immediate danger of being removed from power for at least several months.

Either one MAY be the case, but it could as easily be that they are micro-managing the news for both domestic consumption and for foreign (i.e. our) ears.

[KentuckyWoman]

25. My opinion is that it doesn't matter.

As powerful as Putin is, he is only as strong as the oligarchy that supports him. If he dies tonight they stick someone else in, perhaps even worse.