Putin may have wanted to restore the Russian Empire, but his power over the former Soviet states is waning as his invasion of Ukraine falters.

• When Putin invaded Ukraine, experts speculated that his ultimate goal was to restore the Russian Empire.

• But as the war dragged on, Putin’s attention and military might focused on Ukraine.

• Now some of his post-Soviet allies are expressing frustration at Moscow’s lack of help.

When Russian President Vladimir Putin launched an unprovoked attack on Ukraine in February, experts said he was expecting a quick victory and might set out to try to restore the Russian Empire or the Soviet Union.

Instead, seven months later, Putin’s authority over the post-Soviet region may be more shaky than ever, as his attention and military power remain focused on Ukraine.

The lack of Russian leadership in Central Asia and the Caucasus, which straddles the Black and Caspian Seas, has led to violent border clashes and frustrated Putin’s allies in the region, according to a new report published in New York times.

Since the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991, and even before Putin’s rise to power, Russia has insisted on maintaining influence over the post-Soviet states, according to Taras Kozyu, professor of political science at the National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy.

Kosio wrote in an article for Atlantic Council.

Putin’s desire for the West to stay out of the former Soviet Union was evident, especially in Ukraine. one of the Putin’s reasons for the invasion were the eastern expansion of NATO. He demanded that Ukraine – which is considered an ambitious member of NATO – not be allowed to join the alliance.

Experts have speculated that Putin was motivated by a deeper desire: To restore the Soviet Union or the historical Russian Empirethat predated the Soviet Union at one time or another It included Ukraine, Finland, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan, among others..

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“Evidence of the decline of Russia’s influence can now be seen throughout the post-Soviet world,” Cosio said. “On the front lines in Ukraine, Putin’s invasion force is suffering from a growing shortage of manpower which makes a mockery of trying to portray Russia as the world’s second military power.”

Russia has largely not addressed a violent border dispute between Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan, both of which are members of a military alliance with Putin. “Of course, Ukraine is distracting them,” said Sadir Gaberov, the president of Kyrgyzstan, recently, according to The Times.

The newspaper reported that Armenia, another member of the military alliance, was in conflict with Azerbaijan and was asking for help from Moscow, but without success.

The alliance, the Collective Security Treaty Organization, is made up of six post-Soviet states and has been backed by Putin as a counterpart to NATO. But it also appears to be in jeopardy, as Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan is angry at Moscow’s lack of help and has threatened to leave the alliance, The Times reports.

To offset the heavy losses, Russia has also had to withdraw troops stationed in some post-Soviet countries to redirect them to the front lines in Ukraine, signaling once again to those countries that Moscow’s power is waning, Kozio said.

Meanwhile, the lack of Kremlin leadership in the region left an opportunity for other countries to intervene.

“Russia’s humiliating military setbacks in Ukraine and its economic isolation from the Western world confirmed its position as China’s junior partner,” Kozio wrote, adding: “China has replaced Russia as the preeminent power in Central Asia.”

In addition to declining influence over the post-Soviet states, Russia’s relations with powerful partners are also on uncertain ground. Last month, leaders of both China and India publicly acknowledged concerns about the war in Ukraine.

Putin has escalated the war since then, but Russia has continued to suffer humiliating defeats, such as Saturday’s explosion in the The main bridge connecting Crimea to the Russian mainland.

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