Putin not attending G20 summit
Russian President Vladimir is not attending this week’s G20 Summit in Bali, Indonesia. That’s to avoid having the other leaders treat him like a skunk at the garden party. So now, everyone will be able able to breathe more easily.
It’s good that this genocidal maniac still has enough common sense to avoid creating an international spectacle by attending. Granted, all that egg Ukraine keeps slapping on Putin’s face might have something to do with it. You know, the egg from Ukrainian forces humiliating his once-vaunted military in battle after battle.
Putin fears a coup
Of course, fear of a coup or assassination keeps him practically paralyzed. He never dares stray too far from his fortified Kremlin bunker, let alone fly overseas.
His fear is well-founded. Sure, he has purged many Russian Claus von Stauffenbergs. That is, to prevent anyone from emulating the German officer who attempted to assassinate Hitler during WWII. But Putin knows others are lying in wait to strike.
So traveling to Bali might present an irresistible opportunity for them to execute a bloodless coup. That would leave Putin as the proverbial man without a country. And it would make him vulnerable to arrest for the war crimes he has lorded over in Ukraine.