Six weeks ago, an anonymous Russian source claimed Vladimir Putin was suffering from depression. Another went one further last month and alleged he was actually dead and stuffed in a freezer, his place being taken by a double.
There is, of course, no evidence behind any of these stories. Rather, he has reasons to be cheerful as 2023 nears its end.
On the battlefield, the Ukrainian counteroffensive seems to have run out of steam, and “mud season” makes it hard for there to be any further serious advances until spring. Russian losses have been serious, more than twice those of the Ukrainians, but their defences held and they proved able to adapt to the new capabilities provided by western technology. Indeed, they are increasingly fielding
