Alcoholism is spreading among Putin's entourage after February 24 due to stress, impact of sanctions - Russian media

Meduza writes about this, citing sources in the Kremlin.

Against the background of the war in Ukraine, Russian officials began to drink alcohol much more often and significantly more. Putin is particularly concerned about the condition of "some people from his inner circle", the sources emphasized.

"People have been relieving stress in this way since February. Ministers, their deputies, even some vice prime ministers, employees of the presidential administration and the Security Council, some heads of state corporations,  and governors," one of the interlocutors says. 

He also noted that the main cause of this "stress" is related to the real damage caused to Russia by the invasion and sanctions - while Putin allegedly believes that officials should easily cope with these difficulties.

As previously reported, until February 24, almost no one among Russian officials knew that the president had decided to start a full-scale war against Ukraine, so many of them were completely confused and "didn't know what to do" in the first months of the war.

"They started abusing alcohol [in February]. Some got used to it," one interlocutor summed up.

At the same time, two other informants close to the Kremlin note that, according to their observations, Russia's failures at the front have no effect on the attitude of officials and top managers to alcohol: "They have their own war and their own problems."

Meduza's sources believe that the situation with alcohol consumption among senior Russian leaders and officials began to worry Putin, because "discipline began to suffer": "Someone disappears before an important event, someone gives a vague and confused report. The general public can already see this."

Interlocutors believe that Putin is not going to release those who are guilty: "For now, there will be only hints and mild demands." However, the situation may change: a few years ago, one of the Russian governors already lost his position precisely because of alcohol addiction.

Putin himself, according to the media, hardly drinks now (in contrast to his student years).  But, for example, he publicly told how he once celebrated his birthday with the President of the People's Republic of China Xi Jinping: "I won't hide it, we drank a glass of vodka, and just cut some sausage."