Kremlin.ru
Samantha Vinograd, CNN: Putin is winning, and he knows it
Russia: Homecoming
We assess that Russian President Vladimir Putin views your invitation to visit Washington in 2019 as a kind of homecoming. After years of attacking the United States through a variety of means -- cyberattacks, information warfare and more -- Putin thinks he's in control of events here in the United States for several reasons.
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WNU Editor: This CNN reporter/analyst may believe Putin is "winning", but the view from the Kremlin is radically different. Russia is stuck in the Syrian quagmire. There is a very real possibility that Russia may find itself in an arms race with the West that it cannot afford. The Ukraine war continues to simmer, and sanctions are still in place. Russia's intelligence agency the GRU has been exposed to be a bumbling and inept intelligence agency with the Skripal poisoning revelations. We are at the beginning of a new Cold War, and U.S. - Russian relations show no signs of improving. The Russian economy is growing but far short of its potential and what are people's expectations. The Russian government has also imposed strict austerity measures that no one is happy with. And within the Kremlin itself .... infighting over who will succeed President Putin when he is expected to retire in 5 years. And before I forget .... the Kremlin looks at polls very closely, and they are not happy about this .... Trust in Putin Drops to 39% as Russians Face Later Retirement, Poll Says (Moscow Times). If this is winning .... I want to know what losing looks like.
