Western sanctions have failed to turn the uber-rich into opponents, and Putin's policies have turned them into silent backers.

The senior officer has been a long time critic of Putin and has not been shy of airing his true opinions about the Kremlin boss.

Putin claims no "willingness from Ukraine" to negotiate a peace deal as he touts battlefield gains, and Kyiv claims a brazen strike on a ship far from Russia.

Follow live updates from NBC News as Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks at his annual year-end news conference on Ukraine, peace, war and Trump.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said he was determined to continue the war in Ukraine until his conditions are met, including Ukrainian territory.

Dmitri N. Kozak had worked with President Vladimir V. Putin for three decades before quitting in September. His associates described his break with the Russian leader.

President Putin warned European powers on Tuesday that if they started a war with Russia then Moscow was ready to fight and that the defeat of European powers would be so absolute that there would be no one left to even negotiate a peace deal.

During the full-scale war against Ukraine, the number of billionaires in Russia increased, but they lost political influence. President Vladimir Putin leveraged fear, sanctions, and strict control to compel Russian oligarchs to stay silent and align with the war effort,