From the outside, no one can say for sure what's really going on in the Kremlin.
It is quite possible that what the Americans and British are reporting about tensions in the Russian leadership is true.
This is supported by the publication of such secret service findings.
It is believed to be designed to stoke nervousness and deepen potential rifts in leadership circles in Moscow.
But such a calculation would only make sense if people in Washington and London are relatively sure that there is a kernel of truth in the reports.
In any case, what is visible to the naked eye is that Moscow's original plans for the invasion were based on false assumptions about Ukraine - the mood of the population, the functioning of state institutions, the strength of the army - and the strength of its own armed forces.
It is likely that those responsible are now being sought in Moscow.
But Vladimir Putin has made sure that no one in his immediate circle can credibly say he wasn't there.
The entire Moscow power elite is therefore in one, in his boat.
It is therefore quite possible that, despite internal tensions, the Russian leadership is currently more united in the face of external pressures than it was before the war.
For this reason, one should be careful not to read the visible consequences of the Kremlin's initial failure as a departure from the goal of bringing all of Ukraine under control.
Putin will not do without this, because his commitment was too high for that.
Only a clear defeat can dissuade him from this goal.
So it now depends on who has the longer breath.
And Putin also knows how to wage a war of nerves.
This can be seen in the way he leaves the Europeans in uncertainty about the future of gas supplies and in the hints that a connection between South Ossetia and Russia will expand the conflict area to include Georgia.