The man who 'invented Putinism' has been detained in Russia and is under house arrest, say reports in Moscow.
If confirmed, the move against Vladislav Surkov appears to show Vladimir Putin is turning on his inner circle, and also deep splits among his closest henchmen.
Unconfirmed accounts say Putin's 'ideologist' is being held in a wide-ranging criminal probe that has also seen the arrest of 150 FSB agents.
The case evidently involves the alleged embezzlement of $5 billion (£3.85billion) by the secret services to create an undercover and intelligence network in Ukraine.
The shadowy Surkov, seen as crucial to Putin's long-running electoral success, was the man who encouraged him to believe Ukraine is not a real country.
The 57-year-old is a former Kremlin insider, more recently a Putin point man in Ukraine.
Before Putin sent troops into Ukraine, Surkov called for Ukraine, Belarus and the Baltic states to be annexed.
(Excerpt) Read more at Putin 'arrests man who invented Putinism' in purge of 150 spy chiefs
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Under the bus and into the wood chipper...
If confirmed, the move against Vladislav Surkov appears to show Vladimir Putin is turning on his inner circle, and also deep splits among his closest henchmen.
Unconfirmed accounts say Putin's 'ideologist' is being held in a wide-ranging criminal probe that has also seen the arrest of 150 FSB agents.
The case evidently involves the alleged embezzlement of $5 billion (£3.85billion) by the secret services to create an undercover and intelligence network in Ukraine.
The shadowy Surkov, seen as crucial to Putin's long-running electoral success, was the man who encouraged him to believe Ukraine is not a real country.
The 57-year-old is a former Kremlin insider, more recently a Putin point man in Ukraine.
Before Putin sent troops into Ukraine, Surkov called for Ukraine, Belarus and the Baltic states to be annexed.
(Excerpt) Read more at Putin 'arrests man who invented Putinism' in purge of 150 spy chiefs
----------
Under the bus and into the wood chipper...