> The only possible "win" (using the term very loosely) for him is probably to utterly destroy Ukraine. That's not a win insofar as it doesn't guarantee his po

> The only possible "win" (using the term very loosely) for him is probably to utterly destroy Ukraine. That's not a win insofar as it doesn't guarantee his position at home - it likely further weakens it. For a "win" he'd have to, at the least, actually win the war - Chechnya-style. But I'm not convinced this is possible. I argue it's somewhat more probable that he can pull off a "North Korea" (get defeated in the war, but isolate the country & tighten the screws to insure continuation of his regime in spite of the economic situation at home) - but even this seems iffy to me. Seems to me like the only reasonable way out for him is if US (or somebody) agrees to "extract" him to somewhere safe & anonymous, where he can live a peaceful life as a retired person. Publicly, they can pretend whatever is more convenient. Sure, it's not _justice_, but it might be the least painful way out of this conflict for everyone. Not sure Putin would agree though/ his ego might get in the way.