For more than a quarter of a century, Vladimir Putin has dominated the Kremlin, bending institutions, overcoming economic and military crises, and ultimately becoming almost synonymous with Russia itself. Around him swirl countless questions: his health, his ability to withstand the strain of the war in Ukraine, his political endurance. Yet the most unsettling question may not concern Putin himself, but rather what might happen when he is no longer there.
Putin is not eternal. Rumors about his health continue to circulate, weaving together suspicions and theories—often denied, never entirely silenced. The war has paradoxically granted him renewed and unexpected domestic support, reinforcing the image of an indispensable leader. But behind the curtain of propaganda lies a dangerous void: a political vacuum that no one appears ready to fill.
Sun Tzu wrote that those who know both themselves and their enemy have nothing to fear. But how does one confront a post-Putin Russia, whose inner workings have become increasingly opaque? Tomorrow’s Russia could emerge as a giant without stable leadership, exposed to the ambitions of hawks, generals, and oligarchs competing for power that was deliberately built to remain concentrated and unshared.
The risks are immense. One scenario points to an even more ruthless Russia, where war becomes a tool to shore up fragile internal legitimacy. Another, far worse, envisions the Kremlin as an arena of clashes between rival clans, with the very real danger of nuclear weapons falling beyond effective control. In any case, Europe would no longer remain a distant observer: today the conflict unfolds beyond Ukraine’s borders; tomorrow it could knock on the doors of Warsaw, Berlin, Rome. Cinema has long imagined crises rooted in the Russian world—films exploring such scenarios already exist.
The Romanovs were not immortal, nor were Stalin or Brezhnev. Putin has defied history by remaining in power longer than many, but every reign eventually ends. The true global threat is not his continued rule, but the chaos that may follow. At that moment, the world will be forced to decide whether Russia will emerge as an enigmatic new actor—or as a storm ready to sweep everything away.
This article is a faithful English translation of an opinion piece originally published in Italian. Readers can find the original Italian version at the following link.
