the Russian invasion of Ukraine raised concerns about the president’s mental stability Vladimir Putin.
The brazen act of war, along with maniacal speeches on the state media, has convinced analysts that the Russian dictator is acting irrationally.
His order for Russia’s nuclear deterrence to be put on high alert and his implicit threat from nuclear war if the West intervenes in the invasion of Ukraine, it even seemingly shocks its own military personnel.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has raised concerns about President Vladimir Putin’s mental stability
As the stakes increase and the West puts pressure on the Russian economy, the chances of Putin being ousted by coup are becoming more likely.
But could Ukraine’s next president be even worse than Putin? MailOnline is looking at some of the tyrant’s potential substitutes.
Sergei Shoigu (Minister of Defense)
Shoigu is “Russia’s second most popular politician” after Vladimir Putin.
Chadan’s defense minister in eastern Russia played an important role in organizing the invasion of Ukraine, but was caught on camera after Putin ordered him and army commander Valery Gerasimov to put Russia’s nuclear deterrent on high alert. .
Shoigu took over the role, despite having no military experience in 2012, and chaired the annexation of Crimea in 2014.
Chadan’s defense minister, in eastern Russia, played an important role in organizing the invasion of Ukraine, but was caught on camera after Putin ordered him and Army Chief Valery Gerasimov to put Russia’s nuclear deterrent on high. combat readiness.
Reports say Shoigu is considered Russia’s greatest military leader after Georgi Zhukov, the general who defeated Nazi Germany in World War II.
His rise to power would be complicated by his continued involvement in the invasion of Ukraine, although he is said to be more pragmatic than Putin, which could mean withdrawing from the country in a way that could thaw relations with the West.
Vera Tolz-Zilitinkevich, a professor of Russian at the University of Manchester, told MailOnline: “He is a very, very powerful man at the moment. He is again seen as a pragmatist, in a way they are all better than Putin.
She warned: “The circumstances in which we speak when Putin is replaced are obviously circumstances in which when [the Russian army] he had lost [in Ukraine].
“So Shoigu is considered to be directly involved in organizing this campaign, and that could work against him.”
Nikolay Patrushev (Secretary of the Security Council)
Patrushev is the former head of the FSB, the successor to the formidable Soviet KGB spy agency.
The Secretary of the Security Council is said to share the conspiratorial view of the world shared by former FSB chief Putin.
Security Council Secretary General allegedly shares conspiratorial opinion, former FSB chief Putin
The United Kingdom has found in an investigation that Patrushev most likely ordered the poisoning of former dissident agent Alexander Litvinenko with polonium on British soil in 2006.
While he was head of the FSB, the United Kingdom found in an investigation that Patrushev most likely ordered the poisoning of former dissident agent Alexander Litvinenko with polonium on British soil in 2006.
He said he believed the United States was “rather Russia does not exist at all.”
Prof. Tolz-Zilitinkevich said: “The association with the FSB is a very strong negative.
“You can see under Putin and many intelligence officers around the world, even in democracies, they have a conspiratorial worldview, which is not very useful if you are the leader of a country.
‘[Patrushev is] pretty bad choice. But it is an opportunity.
“He has a paranoid worldview that the world wants to catch him and he needs to uncover potential threats.”
Valeri Gerasimov (Chief of the Army)
Gerasimov has headed the Russian military since 2012, when he was appointed by Putin.
He is the strategist who created the Gerasimov Doctrine, which combines economic, cultural, informational and military tactics to achieve strategic goals for Russia.
This includes Russian action over the past two decades, such as interference in the 2016 US presidential election and Russia’s successful bid to host the 2014 Winter Olympics and the 2018 FIFA World Cup.
Gerasimov is the strategist who created the “Gerasimov Doctrine”, which combines economic, cultural, informational and military tactics to achieve strategic goals for Russia.
The general is another who will have to overcome his involvement in the invasion of Ukraine to succeed Putin.
Prof. Tolz-Zilitinkevich said that as long as the military puts him in charge after a coup, it is possible – Putin’s removal is much more likely to come from the political elite.
Russian history shows that the military is not usually involved in regime change, according to a professor of Russian studies.
She said: “Historically, not only today, the military is under very strict control of the political elite.
Prof. Tolz-Zilitinkevich added that even in the case of Nikita Khrushchev’s maniacal decision-making in the early 1960s, political elites removed him from power.
Dmitry Medvedev (Deputy Chairman of the Security Council and former President)
Medvedev was Russia’s president between 2008 and 2012, after Putin’s second term, and now holds the post of deputy chairman of the Security Council.
The St. Petersburg-born lawyer was elected with a promise to make Putin his prime minister, which he fulfilled immediately.
When Putin regained power in 2012, he returned the favor, giving Medvedev the role of prime minister.
Medvedev served for eight years before he and his government resigned in the Duma to clear the way for Vladimir Putin to make radical constitutional changes.
Although he has experience with the presidency, St. Petersburg’s Medvedev is not considered a threat from Putin, experts say
These changes include reversing the conditions Putin has already met and allowing him to hold on to power until 2034.
Although he has experience with the presidency, the St. Petersburg lawyer is not considered a threat from Putin, according to experts.
The very fact that Putin has entrusted him to be interim president suggests that Medvedev is not considered strong enough to challenge the dictator’s leadership.
Prof. Tolz-Zilitinkevich said: “The situation will be exceptional if Putin is removed and Russia will be on the verge of complete collapse.
“I do not think the elites would choose someone who is generally as weak as Medvedev.
“When he was president, liberalism was not the word, but within this system his instincts were quite liberal.
“He comes from a kind of family of liberal intelligentsia in St. Petersburg. He is not a strong politician. He is nobody.
Mikhail Mishustin (Prime Minister)
Russia’s current prime minister took office just before the Covid pandemic began and was appointed after Medvedev’s resignation.
The former tax police officer would satisfy a number of groups in the Kremlin and in Russia itself.
Former tax police officer Mishustin will satisfy a number of groups in the Kremlin and in Russia itself
The Moscow-born politician embarked on a popular tour of Russia to assess living conditions and support regional development before Covid interrupted the tour.
Prof. Tolz-Zilitinkevich noted: “It would satisfy many different groups in the country.
– In terms of the system, it is quite good.