Even Putin's CHILDHOOD Friends Are ABANDONING Him… It’s that BAD!

The Military Show

Deep inside Russia, a silent power struggle is unfolding. As the Ukraine war drains billions and the economy buckles, Putin's closest allies and oligarchs are quietly moving their wealth beyond the Kremlin's reach. Arrests, purges, elite infighting, and growing economic turmoil suggest the foundations of Putin's system are beginning to crack. In this video, we examine the evidence behind Russia's internal unraveling, the battle for survival among its elites, and what it could mean for the future of Putin's regime.  ⏱️ CHAPTERS: 00:00 - Putin Burns $827 Million Daily in Ukraine War 01:27 - Russian Oligarchs Move Billions Abroad to Avoid Putin 04:08 - Putin Purges Top Officials as Russian Minister Flees 07:11 - Russian Army Mutiny Warnings and Rogue Wagner Mercenaries 09:42 - Russia War Economy Collapses Under $75 Billion Deficit 12:39 - Is the Russian Regime Facing Total Collapse?  Support us directly as we bring you independent, up-to-date reporting on military news and global conflicts by clicking here: https://www.youtube.com/@TheMilitaryShow/join  #militarystrategy #militarydevelopments #militaryanalysis #themilitaryshow  SOURCES: https://pastebin.com/HWaLDbZ0

Transcript

00:00deep in the bowels of russia a reverse hunger games is going on this isn't about the last one

00:06standing surviving it's about elites many of whom are putin's childhood friends trying to get away

00:12from the russian leader so they're nowhere near when the man left behind bites the dust in classic

00:18hunger games fashion those elites are turning on each other and on putin everything that makes

00:23russia tick is collapsing in a mess of backstabbing political maneuvering and outright exodus

00:30we are watching the collapse of russia in real time but it's happening far away from the battlefield

00:35what's happening in russia right now isn't a clear-cut exodus you won't see private planes

00:40flying putin's insiders out as they physically abandon him nor will you hear much from those

00:45insiders in terms of their direct intentions to betray him that's not how things work in russia

00:51so much of what's happening right now is occurring in the shadows but make no mistake the elites are

00:56getting out while they still can only they aren't physically leaving instead there's an exodus of

01:01the one thing that all of these people from the insiders and the oligarchs through to putin himself

01:06value more than anything else money as the russian invasion of ukraine burns through 827 million dollars

01:14every single day with putin showing no sign of stopping as his obsession over ukraine has taken over

01:20his whole being the men who keep putin in power are quietly jumping ship this is the reverse hunger

01:26games putin will be left alone to fall while the rest survive putin's regime is running out of time

01:32because russia needs more money now than ever before to continue its invasion and the insiders and elites

01:38are doing everything they can to ensure that putin can't get his grubby mitts on their cash

01:43bloomberg revealed the scale of the exodus in a july 16th report it said that some of russia's richest

01:48people who are mostly in their positions due to their closeness to putin are sending billions of

01:53dollars of their money abroad to ensure that putin can't have it those elites want to avoid the

01:58pitfalls of being close to putin whether that's a leader who comes with a cap in hand asking for

02:03donations to his cause or a despot president who outright sees his assets that aren't handed over to

02:08him the idea here is simple if the money isn't in the country then there's nothing that putin can do

02:14to take it this outflow of cash is estimated to be in the tens of billions of dollars bloomberg reports

02:19as it claims that six wealthy russians and other people familiar with the russian elite

02:24have all told it the same thing many of russia's richest people are conducting wholesale shifts in

02:30their investment portfolios with many putting money into cryptocurrency and gold while others are

02:36amassing cash in foreign investment funds and property the gulf region in particular is increasingly

02:42becoming a haven for those who want to keep what they have away from putin none of this should

02:47come as a surprise to russia's leader he has created this situation for himself putin believed

02:53that because he was the man responsible for making many of russia's current oligarchs who they are today

02:57granting them obscene riches in return for them refusing to rock the boat that those people would

03:02stay loyal to him in his moment of need this was a miscalculation when you buy people who are concerned

03:08only with money those people aren't going to give that money back when you come calling putin has

03:13been trying we mentioned donations earlier toward the end of march the guardian reported that putin

03:18was actively asking russia's elites to give him cash that he could use to fund his insane war those

03:24elites can see the daily spending and they know that russia's defense bill has risen to over 160

03:29billion dollars and will keep rising most ignored the calls for donations who's in has also created

03:36mistrust among his insiders since 2024 kremlin approved authorities have engaged in regular

03:42asset seizures targeting some of russia's richest people with a focus on those who tried to maintain

03:47some form of ties with the world outside of russia but those seizures could only take putin so far

03:52eventually his desperate thirst for ukraine war funding will lead him to turn his attention to

03:57anybody in russia who has money friend or foe the friends also see this and that's why they're getting

04:04their cash out as quickly as they can in fact we're already seeing this happen the story of arkady and

04:10boris rottenberg shows that putin will do whatever it takes to keep himself alive even if that means

04:15destroying those who are closest to him these brothers are longtime friends of putin they've even

04:20served as judo sparring partners directly helping putin to puff up his image as some great strongman who

04:26can protect russia but when push comes to shove putin discards such loyalties to keep his war going

04:32in a july 2026 report the carnegie endowment revealed that there is a purge of those loyal to

04:38the rottenbergs happening as we speak somewhat similar to the purge of the elites who were loyal to

04:42former russian defense minister sergey shoigu this purge is seeing the brothers who have made billions

04:48from their association with putin be forced to watch as their own network crumbles konstantin markov

04:53and alexander naradko both of whom are directly linked to the rottenbergs and have managed or headed various

04:59projects on their behalf have already been arrested more will follow as putin looks to weaken a sect of

05:05the elite that he now believes to be a threat all of this has to be approved by putin the

05:10rottenbergs

05:10brothers know that their childhood friend who made them rich is now coming for them not just due to

05:16their political influence but because they oversee a vast network of private companies and putin wants

05:21the money those companies generate we don't know if the rottenbergs are among the elites getting their cash

05:26out of russia right now they will be crazy not to be as for russia's other insiders that are getting

05:32their cash out while they can they're all doing something that is going to be a common theme in

05:36this video realizing that if it can happen to people who are as close to putin as the rottenbergs

05:41then it can happen to anybody but this is just the start for putin as the money leaves russia putin

05:47is

05:47also having to deal with ministers soldiers and one of the many ghosts of putin's murderous past

05:52coming back to haunt him we mentioned shoigu earlier his removal from his position as defense

05:59minister is part of an ongoing culling within the ministry he used to lead shoigu has survived he is

06:05the head of russia's security council now though that is a steep downgrade from the position he used to

06:11hold others haven't been so lucky several of shoigu's former deputies including pavel papov timur ivanov and

06:19rusland salikov have been arrested on various charges related to corruption this is a cull just

06:24as we see with the rottenberg network only it's happening at the highest level of russian power

06:28putin is taking aim at ministers who are no longer convenient to him some ministers are fighting back

06:34denise putzayev who was a high-ranking official in russia's natural resources and environment ministry

06:40has hightailed it to the us following a sacking that came ahead of criminal prosecution

06:45this is the first time a sitting minister has escaped russia since the war began

06:49and it seems likely that more will follow in the state duma putin is being forced to deal with other

06:55ministers such as the leader of the communist party gennady zyuganov calling him out for directly

07:00leading russia into a war that will only result in a repeat of the events of 1917 in other words

07:06the

07:06complete collapse of putin's system there's only one word for this chaos and there's more mutiny is

07:14being warned in the russian military ranks back in late june a russian veteran named alexander lunin

07:19claimed that the brutality russian commanders displayed to their soldiers was going to lead to

07:24an uprising lunin asked putin for a direct audience and he made claims that ministers from russia's

07:29interior ministry and defense ministry had encouraged him to speak up more traitors in putin's

07:35midst lunin was soon arrested for his outbursts and he seems to have disappeared off the face of the

07:39earth after the kremlin labeled him as mentally unwell but these calls for mutiny would have sent

07:45shivers down putin's spine as they brought back echoes of the wagner uprising you may remember that

07:51uprising and the man who led it evgeny prigozhin putin took care of him or should we say officially

07:56a plane crash got rid of prigozhin after he attempted to lead an insurrection of his wagner paramilitary

08:01force the potential for another uprising now is the last thing that putin needs but it could be coming

08:07lunin warned of it and that ghost of putin's past is also rearing its head evgeny prigozhin's son

08:14pavel now leads a small company of wagner mercenaries in africa around 500 soldiers strong

08:20these troops refuse to become part of the new version of wagner which has been absorbed into

08:24the russian state instead they stand in direct defiance against putin running what the wall street

08:30journal describes as his own little rogue warlord empire all of which is outside of putin's control

08:37and in all of this control is the key point control is the one thing that putin needs

08:41to keep his version of russia and his own claim to power intact like the godfather of the mafia

08:47putin has built a system based on corruption lies and empowering the people he thought would support

08:52him but that system is starting to crumble insiders are getting their money out of russia as fast as they

08:57can ministers are either speaking out fleeing russia or getting arrested with the latter only feeding

09:03fuel into the growing fire that threatens to engulf the kremlin there is talk of mutiny a former

09:09mutineer's son actively thumbs his nose at putin putin has been playing with a stacked deck for decades

09:15now he's lost his cards and in this reverse hunger games may the odds be never in his favor

09:21the big question now is why all of this is happening the simple answer is that it all comes down

09:26to

09:26the impact that putin's failing war is having on the elites and the insiders but it goes deeper than

09:31that much deeper before we explain how this is a reminder that you're watching the military show

09:37we dig beyond the headlines to give you the full story if you like what you see hit subscribe today

09:42so what's really happening russia's economy is collapsing for one and that isn't great for a system

09:48built on keeping money flowing to the rich so you can buy their loyalty that economy is in a

09:53shambles right now the budget deficit is over 75 billion dollars after the first six months of

09:582026 which is over 51 above the target that russia has set for the entire year and russia's big

10:05problem there is that liquid assets don't come close to covering the deficit so russia borrows money

10:10a lot of money the next payment on russia's loans which comes close to 12 billion dollars

10:15is due right around when this video will be published the kremlin can't refuse to pay as that

10:20will lead to hyperinflation issues that we'll get into in a moment what russia has is an economy that

10:26fortune calls an illusion built on debt a banking crisis is on the verge of erupting as russia has

10:32subsidized loans for years and banks now face a situation where 10 of their corporate loans can't be

10:38repaid along with 15 of their retail loans that's a lot of money simply not making it back to russia's

10:44core financial institutions over 500 000 russians declared bankruptcy in 2025. inflation is already

10:52ruining the lives of millions as they're forced to shell out up to 167 percent more for basic food

10:58items in 2026 than they spent in 2024 and with ukraine's attacks on refineries shipping and fuel

11:04trucks causing a fuel crisis in russia the risk of stagflation where growth stalls and inflation skyrockets

11:11is high that brings us back to the hyperinflation issues russia is dealing with this economic crisis

11:17while it has massive debts to pay off putin isn't making things any better he's promising new soldiers

11:23that russia will wipe off up to 140 000 of debt for them if they sign up to die in

11:28his war again that's

11:30a lot of money that isn't making it back to the banks that are already struggling but what happens when

11:34the money runs out and the kremlin can't back up these promises along with the eye-watering salaries and

11:39bonuses that it pays out to soldiers russia could respond by printing more rubles that's the recipe

11:45for hyperinflation that we're talking about other russian schemes have already failed the kremlin

11:50tried to sell bonds but that scheme only raised 10 of the goal that russia set attempting to take out

11:56more loans also isn't working as those who are willing to lend money to russia want interest rates

12:00commensurate with the risk they're taking on and the kremlin can't pay the other option is that

12:05putin could go on a rampage of doing what he's already been doing in a limited capacity

12:09taking from the rich to give to the kremlin remember the theme we mentioned earlier in the video

12:14the elites and the insiders seeing what's happening to people around them and getting out while they

12:18still can that theme comes back with a vengeance here russia's richest people aren't stupid they can

12:24see the absolute nightmare that putin has created to fund his invasion and they know that nothing the

12:29kremlin tries will help those insiders are ultimately the ones with the money and putin will come

12:34calling if the ukraine war continues get the cash out now and he has nothing to steal russia's dire

12:40economic situation is one of the reasons we're seeing the cash exodus and so much of the other

12:45discontent we've covered but there's another factor putin's insiders are primarily business owners

12:51many operating private enterprises that are as successful as they are because the kremlin favors them

12:56for lucrative contracts that's how the rottenbergs made their billions being close to putin pays well

13:02when the dictator isn't hell-bent on continuing a failing war but now those business owners who

13:07have benefited from putin's corruption for so long are watching as russia taxes its private sector into

13:12oblivion and in many cases cannibalizes the companies that made the insiders so rich in the first place

13:18by confiscating them and handing them over to the state the environment for russian businesses is

13:23let's say tricky at the moment in a november 2025 report the moscow times revealed that corporate losses had

13:29jumped 25 percent in the january to september period reaching a little over 83 billion dollars

13:36about 18 400 of russia's companies posted losses during this period which is 11 percent more than

13:41posted losses in 2024 the jamestown foundation adds that almost 30 percent of all russia's companies

13:47became unprofitable in 2025 with combined losses of about 100 billion dollars by the end of the year

13:54fast forward to july 2026 and metza reports that business activity in russia has fallen so

13:59drastically that it has reached spring 2022 levels which you may remember is the period when putin

14:05launched his invasion as the foreign intelligence service of ukraine puts it business activity in

14:10russia has fallen to spring 2022 levels the business climate indicator calculated by the russian central

14:15bank in june fell to minus 3.6 points from 0.9 in may a zero on this scale separates

14:22growth from

14:22contraction so business no longer believes in improvement it's not a great time to be a member of the elite

14:27who operates businesses inside russia right now the prospect of making more money is getting dimmer add

14:33the cannibalization we mentioned into the equation we've already mentioned asset seizures we saw the

14:38perfect example of that on june 19th when the kremlin handed over management of jsc elmer which was one

14:43of russia's largest owners of logistics and industrial real estate over to the state-run neftakimremstroy that's

14:50about 1.05 million square meters of land gone just handed over to the state so the kremlin can ultimately

14:55profit from its use this is just one of the many examples by july 2025 russia had seized over 50

15:01billion dollars in assets from private companies with many of those assets being owned by western

15:06companies that left russia following the invasion more than 800 companies have been transferred into

15:11state ownership since the beginning of the war this is cannibalization of private enterprise to fund

15:16a fight that none of putin's insiders actually want to be a part of and again we come back to

15:21that

15:21theme anybody who owns a private business in russia will now be asking themselves when it will be their

15:26turn putin created all of this too much lying cheating and backstabbing of his own has led him

15:32down this road unable to see his own incompetence and the impact that it's having on russia putin is

15:38the one being left behind in the reverse hunger games one by one his insiders his elites and his cronies

15:44are seeing that they aren't safe no matter how close they get to putin if anything being close is a

15:49calamity shoigu and the rottenbergs can attest to that when putin needs something he'll try to get

15:55it whether by coercion or force now as he lives in fear spending most of his time in bunkers and

16:00handing himself over to the paranoia that has engulfed his life putin has lost control the elites he

16:06thought he controlled are doing everything that they can to escape his grasp as they plan for lives

16:10after putin rather than helping putin to achieve his goals russia's leader is fast approaching the end of

16:16the road and when he reaches that end he'll go hurtling off a cliff with nobody willing to stop

16:21him it's a tale as old as time ultimately the all-powerful dictator is the architect of his own

16:26demise still for as long as putin remains in power russia will continue on the downward slope

16:31and we don't just mean economically with casualties surpassing 1.4 million in ukraine russia is hurtling

16:38toward a demographic crisis that will leave it weaker than ever before china is licking its lips the

16:43russian far east is going to be vulnerable we may be watching the collapse of the russian state as it

16:48happens and you can find out why by watching our video and if you enjoyed this video remember to

16:53hit subscribe and enable notifications to see more of the military show and our analysis thank you for

16:59watching

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