TIME’S UP
Putin’s top propagandist turns on tyrant & hints at ENDING despot’s reign as Russia quivers over Ukraine ‘victory plan’
Solovyov hinted at a regime change inside Russia, saying punishing those responsible for the incursion is 'not enough'
VLADIMIR Putin's top propagandist has seemingly turned on the tyrant and hinted at ending his 25 years of "catastrophic" rule in Russia.
Popular Russian TV host Vladimir Solovyov was live on air when he argued that "a resignation is necessary" while referring to the embarrassing Kursk siege that has left Putin red-faced.
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Russia has taken a massive hit at the country's western borders near Kursk where Kyiv's troops managed to grab Russian land for the first time since World War Two.
Speaking of the dire consequences of the Ukrainian onslaught, Solovyov hinted at a regime change inside Russia, saying punishing those responsible for the incursion is "not enough".
He added: "It is necessary to appoint those who understand how to [execute] it effectively, quickly and clearly.
"[Even] if this requires the resignation of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief."
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Vladimir Putin is the supreme commander of Russian armed forces.
While it is unclear if Solovyov meant to refer to Putin's resignation or other military officials, his guest panel on the stage - including State Duma member Andrey Gurulyov - looked uncomfortable.
A Russian news agency tried to brush off the comment, claiming that it was a misunderstanding that stemmed from the guests hearing Solovyov utter "Otstavka", which means resignation in Russian.
It says the host most likely intended Stavka - a military outpost used in World War two - and called for the creation of a "headquarters of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief".
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Putin has been ruling Russia since 1999 - and is now the longest-serving Russian leader since Josef Stalin who led the Soviet Union from 1924 to 1953.
Putin's political career echoes features of a megalomaniac tyrant: total authoritarian control over Russia, a brutal crackdown on dissent, manipulation - even on his own citizens - and an ambitious thirst for power.
After the first eight years as president of Russia, Putin stepped down to become a prime minister - only to avoid violating the limit of two consecutive terms in the Kremlin.
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Though he was back as president in 2012 following an election that was marked by alleged frauds and protests - and has held the position ever since.
Under his reign, he has - through propaganda - projected a false image of Russia as a world superpower to his own people.
He has exercised absolute power, allegedly killed a long list of critics, and has waged a war against the West's idea of democracy.
Experts fear that Putin, who will turn 77 at the end of his current presidency, will clutch to power and seek to rule Russia for as long as he can.
Last year, the tyrant changed the law in Russia to allow him to remain president until 2036 in a desperate bid to cling to power for as long as he can.
And the reason why he will not give up his throne so easily lies in the history of Soviet Russia.
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Keir Giles, a Russia expert at Chatham House, told The Sun: "I don't think there's any reason to assume that he is going to consider at some point that he is too old to hang on to power and has to give it up because that's traditional.
"Throughout Russian history, decisions like that have been fatal, and the exceptions to the rule are under very specific circumstances, like when Yeltsin handed over to Putin with the guarantees that he's not going to be prosecuted for anything afterwards."
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