Why is Vladimir Putin so afraid of being assassinated? And what will happen to him if he loses the war? We spoke to experts to paint a picture of the man who invaded Ukraine
this week we ran an eight-part series posing questions to experts about what the Russian president's motivations are.Vladimir Putin grew up in the ruins of post-war Leningrad - now known as St Petersburg - and from a young age was running with street gangs.
Even as a youth, he would play his cards close to his chest and"never gave very much away about himself or what he was thinking", Mr Short said - traits he has carried on into his presidency. "It was extremely difficult - a really terrible period that they had to go through in the 1990s," he continued.
He saw the"chaos" of the 1990s in Russia, and for the last 20 years has been trying to restore the"lost empire". "Some people probably are out to get him. After 25 years at the top, you do amass enemies along the way - but part of it is imagined." It could also be the"inevitable result of being the absolute ruler of a rather cannibalistic system", said Mr Galeotti.
For Russians, he said, there are two Putins - and it's reflected in the fact his approval ratings tend to be about 80%, while his trust ratings lean closer to 30%."There's Putin, the icon of Russia - that becomes a representation ... If people are asked if they approve of Putin, it's whether you approve or not of Russia.
Sir Andrew Wood, a former British ambassador to Russia, says there is a level of apathy from Russians. John Foreman, who was recently Britain's defence attaché in Moscow, said the close circle would have been together for 25 to 30 years. They are not"stupid people" and they are aware of what is happening with the war, he said, but"at this stage they have calculated that it's better to stick with who you know than risk a change of leadership" - and face losing their positions, and possibly their lives.
"At the beginning, he did have a government. He did have people who could advise him on the economy," he said. Mr Short, the author and journalist, agrees that Mr Putin"still sees a role" for Prigozhin, at least for now. But Prigozhin's meeting with Mr Putin would have been like the warlord"bending knee before its master, begging for forgiveness, and pledging his loyalty"."He has powerful enemies, Prigozhin, and what happens to him in the medium term I think is different to what happens to him in the short term," Mr Foreman said.
"There's no cost in either national wealth or people they won't pay. Nobody's spoken in public against it, he's got no opposition at home." The last Soviet leader to gamble with such high stakes was Nikita Khrushchev during the Cuban missile crisis - a 13-day showdown between the US and Russia widely considered to be the closest the world has come to nuclear Armageddon."And it turns out that he could back down but the parole was up and, of course, he was removed from power afterwards."
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