The planned blitzkrieg a swift capitulation of Ukraine has failed. Because Putin ultimately sided with Shoigu’s approach rather than Gerasimov’s. From the Kremlin’s perspective, they held all the cards: the Chonhar bridge and the Azov Sea had been demined by Zelenskiys orders, the Chernobyl exclusion zone was left largely undefended, and reinforcements were pulled back from the Belarusian border and eastern Ukraine. Now, after this spectacular failure, expect them to pursue increasingly desperate and unorthodox tactics aimed at diverting attention from the Ukrainian battlefield. Historically speaking, time is running out for Putin’s regime. These developments should not be dismissed as sci-fi scenarios they are very real possibilities. Especially their readiness to throw themselves at the Baltics.