The invasion of Ukraine by Russia in February was the culmination of two decades of power that have been enabled by world leaders and billionaires. Putin has been in power for over 20 years. From 2000 to 2008 he served as Russia's president and from 2012 he was re-elected. From 1999 to 2000 and 2008 to 2012 he was the prime minister of Russia. Most of the world considers the annexation of the peninsula of Crimea by force by Putin to be illegal and illegitimate. There have been reports of murdered dissidents, a rotting of democracy in Russia, and interference in foreign elections during his time in power. Influenced figures have continued to support Putin, either through direct support, like partnerships or reliance on Russian energy products, or indirectly, by uncritically repeating his talking points. Some of the key figures who aided Putin's power. The country's war efforts since the February invasion have been overseen by the former president and the current president. After Putin's first two terms, the president of Russia was elected by the people. Putin served as prime minister from 2008 to 2012 despite being limited to two consecutive terms by the constitution. When Putin reclaimed the presidency in 2012 in an election marred by allegations of fraud, Medvedev took his place as prime minister and stayed until 2020. He is still the deputy chair of the Security Council of Russia. A number of bellicose statements about the conflict and Russia's nuclear arsenal have been issued by Medvedev. After the US agreed to provide Ukraine with advanced rocket systems, Medvedev said he wanted to "disappear" all of Moscow's enemies. He framed Russia's war as a sacred conflict with "Satan" and reiterated Putin's thinly veiled nuclear threats. Sergei Shoigu was considered a possible successor to the Russian presidency. Shoigu has become a lightning rod for criticism due to his role in Russia's war in Ukraine. Russia's first president, Boris Yeltsin, and then Putin himself were Shoigu's close friends. The friendship between Shoigu and Putin seemed to go beyond politics, as the two often vacationed together in the forest. Shoigu has executed Putin's defense ambitions for years despite not actually serving in the military. One day after the invasion of Ukraine, the West Shoigu gave sanction. There are rumors of a rift between Putin and Shoigu. Shoigu's role as Putin's scapegoat has made him remain silent. Mark Galeotti told Sophia Ankel that Shoigu was willing to be Putin's bulletproof vest. The secretary of Russia's Security Council is one of the few people in power that the president trusts. One of the most powerful siloviki is thought to be the relationship between Patrushev and Putin, which dates back to 1998. According to The Washington Post, Patrushev has been whispering poison into Putin's ear for years. Since the beginning of the war, Patrushev has traveled on behalf of Russia's war effort, speaking for Putin on a number of topics. The founder of the Russian political consulting firm R.Politik told The Post of Patrushev that his ideas form the basis of decisions taken by Putin. One of the few people Putin listens to is him. Patrushev has become a frequent promoter of Russia's war since the invasion. His prominence on the global stage has led to questions about his personal aims and whether or not he is trying to get Putin's power for himself. According to some intelligence experts, Patrushev is Putin's likely replacement should the president become ill. Dozens of Russian tycoons were hit with Western sanctions after the invasion over their close ties to President Putin. Putin's rise to power was aided by many of these businessmen. During the "perestroika" reforms to Russia's economy and political system in the late 1980's, several of the "original" oligarchs gained power. These men increased their influence after the fall of the Soviet Union by buying up industrial companies that were being sold off. Putin promised to crack down on corruption in the government when he was president. Even though men who remained friendly to Putin were able to grow even richer, they were not able to stop Putin from doing what he wanted. In the 1990s, there was a new wave of security elites in Russia. The term silovarchs is a combination of the words "oligarch" and "siloviki", a reference to the Russian military. The analyst at the security intelligence firm said that the siloviki are a part of Putin's close circle. He said thatSiloviki are closer to the president than the other way around. Some of the Oligarchs have more power than others. Roman Abramovich has emerged as one of Russia's most recognizable billionaires thanks to his previous ownership of a top-flight London soccer team. The European Union and the UK imposed sanctions on Roman Abramovich after Russia invaded Ukraine. As Western officials were confiscating his assets, he was acting as an unofficial envoy for peace between Russia and Ukraine. Although not an official member of the negotiations team, Abramovich's access to such conversations offer insight into what is believed to be his close relationship with Putin. Insider's Grace Dean and James Dean reported in April that European officials said that Abramovich has "privileged access" to the Russian president. He has denied any financial ties to Putin or a close relationship with him. Western officials say that Putin has given preferential treatment to the businessman and his businesses. According to the Times of London, a handwritten note from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was given to Putin by Abramovich, but he dismissed it. The billionaire trader and businessman who faced US sanctions before Russia's invasion is also a close friend of Putin. The wealthiest man in Russia was the subject of US sanctions. The two men have known each other since the early 1990s, when Putin gave Timchenko an oil export license. Gunvor Group is a Swiss trading house that sells billions of dollars of Russian oil. The company and Putin denied that the Russian president was benefiting from Gunvor's activities. The US imposed sanctions on Timchenko and other members of the Russian leadership's inner circle, accusing them of having links to Putin. He said he sold his stake in Gunvor the day before the US imposed sanctions on him. The founder and owner of the private investment firm is a major shareholder in Russia's largest natural gas producer. China and Russia are not allies, but their relationship has grown over the past 10 years. Both countries said in February that their relationship has no limits. According to Western intelligence officials, Chinese officials asked Russian officials to wait until after the end of the Winter Olympics in Beijing in order to be safe. According to the intelligence report, there was some level of prior knowledge about the invasion by Chinese officials. Simon Miles, an assistant professor at Duke University's Sanford School of Public Policy and a historian of the Soviet Union and US-Soviet relations, told Insider that the request to delay may have given Putin the confidence to go through with it. As the Western countries imposed sanctions against Russia, China continued to purchase oil and gas from the country, as a way of keeping the war going. Since the beginning of the war, China has quietly increased its purchases of Russian oil. Putin admitted in September that the Chinese leader had concerns about the war. China abstained from the UN Security Council condemning Russia's annexation of Ukrainian territories. India has continued to buy energy products from Russia despite the war. In the spring of 2015, India dramatically increased its purchases of Russian oil at discounted rates, which helped to fund the war effort in Ukraine. India did not condemn Russia's invasion, and the two countries referred to their relationship as a special and privileged strategic partnership. During a meeting with Putin in September, Modi criticized the war. Modi said that the era is not an era of war. Putin and Modi both wanted the war to end quickly. Fear of losing China and India's support may have encouraged Putin to escalate the war in order to end it sooner. India abstained from the UN Security Council's condemnation of Russia's annexation of Ukrainian territory. Since the beginning of the war, a sea of TV propagandists have pushed the Kremlin's talking points. Skabeyeva has been dubbed the "propagandist-in-chief" and the "iron doll of Putin TV" because of her constant appearances on the government-owned TV channel Russia-1. Experts told Insider's Mark that Skabeyeva has built her career over the last 15 years as a Kremlin spokesman. She is the host of the political talk show "60 Minutes" on Russia-1 with her husband Yevgeny Popov. She caused a stir when she said on television that Russia was in the middle of World War III. Sarah Oates, a professor and senior scholar at the University of Maryland's Philip Merrill College of Journalism told Insider that Skabeyeva's inflammatory words were no accident. In April, Vasily Gatov, a Russian media researcher and visiting fellow at the USC Annenberg Center on Communication Leadership and Policy, compared her to Tucker Carlson. Musk has pushed Kremlin talking points to his 118 million followers on his site. Musk floated the idea of holding elections in four Ukrainian territories that Russia claimed to have annexed in a move that was widely denounced as illegitimate and illegal. The plan said that Russia should be acknowledged as part of the country, that the water supply to the peninsula should be guaranteed, and that Ukraine should not be involved in the conflict. According to a leading Russia analyst, Musk's peace plan was so favorable to Russia that it had the Kremlin's fingerprints on it. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky accused Musk of being in support of Putin. One point pushed by the Kremlin is that the importance of the peninsula to Russia's national security should be emphasized by Musk. Donald Trump bragged about his close relationship with Putin and downplayed the national security threat posed by Russia. Trump praised the Russian president in a speech at the Conservative Political Action Conference and said the rest ofUkraine would fall quickly. He said the people of the peninsula would prefer to be with Russia. Trump accepted Putin's denials that Russia interfered in the election to help him and hurt Clinton. He acknowledged the interference but has often denied it. Trump was accused of withholding aid to Ukraine in order to find dirt on Biden, his political opponent, in the first of his impeachments. Since the beginning of the war, Trump has continued to praise Putin. Putin's justification for invading was praised by Trump when he was in office. In October, Trump appeared to take blame for the invasion away from Putin and place it on the US. "If you look at it, our country and our leadership taunted Putin," Trump said. They're almost forcing him to go in with what they're telling him. It was dumb. After Putin threatened the use of nuclear weapons, Trump pushed a peace deal between Russia and the Ukraine. Tucker Carlson frequently shares Putin's talking points on his show, "Tucker Carlson Tonight." Carlson talked about how the US should not care about the conflict between Russia andUkraine on his show. He claimed that NATO doesn't want Russia to exist and that Democrats want you to hate Putin, so they worry about the conflict. NATO's goal is to hold back the development of Russia according to him. He's also attacked the country of Ukraine, whose citizens have mounted a society-wide response and begun to regain territory seized by the Russian invaders. Carlson acknowledged Putin and Russia were to blame but continued to spread their messages to his large audience. The Kremlin instructed Russian state media to play clips from Carlson's show, according to a leaked memo. Carlson has defended Putin, downplayed the threat posed by Russia, and lied about the US's involvement in the sabotage of theNord Stream.
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