Putin's allies are beginning to lose trust amid attacks on Moscow — The Hill
Vladimir Putin’s allies are increasingly showing signs of a shift in their stance amid Ukrainian strikes on Moscow, The Hill reports. According to the publication, this is linked to doubts about Russia’s ability to achieve success on the front lines and effectively defend its own territory from attacks.
The authors note that recent weeks have been particularly unsuccessful for the Russian leadership. According to them, the Russian army’s losses continue to rise, while Ukraine is simultaneously increasing pressure on occupied Crimea. The article specifically quotes the reaction of former commander of U.S. Central Command David Petraeus: “Ukraine may be able to isolate the front line, as well as Crimea… It’s incredibly impressive.”
The authors devote special attention to Ukrainian drone attacks on Russian territory. During the 2026 St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, drones struck an oil terminal in St. Petersburg and a naval base in Kronstadt. According to observers, this dealt a serious blow to the Kremlin’s reputation.
Following these attacks, on June 4, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy addressed Putin in an open letter, proposing an immediate ceasefire along the current front line and a face-to-face meeting in a third country to end the war. In the letter, Zelenskyy also warned the Kremlin about the consequences of prolonging the war: “When Russia grows weary, change will come.” However, the Russian leader rejected both the proposal and the warning.
Shortly thereafter, Ukrainian drones once again penetrated the Russian air defense system and attacked an oil refinery in Moscow operated by Gazprom Neft. Commenting on the strike, Zelenskyy called it “a just response to Russian attacks and the Kremlin’s prolongation of the war.”
As the authors of the article note, against this backdrop, Belarus’s self-proclaimed president, Alexander Lukashenko, has been adopting an increasingly cautious stance. Despite statements about maintaining military cooperation with Russia, he has recently resisted sending Belarusian troops to fight in the war against Ukraine and has publicly acknowledged his country’s vulnerability to Kyiv’s response.
The columnists conclude that setbacks on the front lines and strikes on Russian territory have already opened the eyes of Putin’s closest allies.
“Even Lukashenko senses that his overlord is in trouble. Putin is no longer able to defend his own airspace, and he will not come to the defense of his allies. He has gone from demonstrating strength and power to becoming a grandpa hiding in his bunker,” the authors of the article conclude.
On the night of June 20, the Ukrainian Defense Forces struck a number of Russian military targets. Among the targets was a bridge near Henichesk, which the occupiers use to transport equipment and resupply their troops between occupied Crimea and the southern front.
In Taganrog, Russia, a power substation that supplied electricity to the “Atlant-Aero” defense enterprise was damaged. As a result, production lines involved in the manufacture of drones were disrupted.
