Remember when one of Putin's closest allies said the West was provoking global conflict?

Russian officials within Vladimir Putin's inner circle have been sounding off against the West ever since the Russian President ordered the invasion of Ukraine, but one close Putin ally caught the attention of the media back in February 2024 after he blamed the West for stoking global conflict.

On February 16th, Putin's then-Secretary of the Russian Security Council, and close political ally, Nikolai Patrushev accused the West of sowing conflict around the globe and warned some of Russia’s neighbors could soon face chaos. 

While speaking in the capital of Kyrgyzstan during a meeting on issues pertaining to ongoing issues in Afghanistan, Patrushev accused Western nations of inciting conflicts that were, at the time, unfolding in both Ukraine and the Middle East. 

According to a report from Newsweek, Patrushev explained that the wars in the Middle East and Ukraine were part of a plan that allowed the West to maintain global dominance and remarked that the U.S. benefited from the chaos. 

"Our meeting is taking place against the backdrop of an unprecedented aggravation of the international situation,” Patrushev said. “The reason for this is the West's desire to maintain its dominance in world affairs at any cost.”

“At the same time, Washington is confident that, in conditions of general chaos, it is more convenient to do this,” Patrushev went on to comment. “To achieve their goals, Westerners are ready to do anything.”

Patrushev used Ukraine as a “striking” example of his assessment and told those at the meeting that the conflict was one that the global West was using in order to deal Russia “a strategic defeat."

Newsweek reported that Patrushev was repeating the Kremlin’s view of the conflict in Ukraine, namely that Russia was engaged in a proxy war with the West because Kyiv’s Western partners and allies were supplying the nation with military aid. 

The Russian Security Council Secretary then accused Western nations of planning to stir up trouble in the South Caucasus region, citing recent conflict that occurred over Nagorno-Karabakh, an Armenian-dominated enclave in Azerbaijan, that had occurred near the time of his comments. 

The fighting that erupted over Nagorno-Karabakh saw Azerbaijan launch anti-terrorist operations against Armenian-backed authorities in the region, which is important to the Russian state because it shares a border with Azerbaijan. 

“We also see the desire of Westerners to shake up the situation in the South Caucasus, as well as to interfere with the Armenian-Azerbaijani settlement, which has led to an aggravation of the situation in these regions," Patrushev said. 

Patrushev’s remarks came at a time when relations between Russia and the West had reached one of their lowest points since the height of the Cold War. Western relations with the Kremlin have only continued to deteriorate in the months that have followed Patrushev’s remarks.

However, it is important to note that, unlike other Russian officials who have sounded off publically against the West, Patrushev’s remarks may have held more weight due to his position in government at the time, and as one of Putin's oldest allies. 

Patrushev is no ordinary ally of Putin, his political power rose alongside Putin’s own power, and the two have known each other since long before the Soviet Union collapsed back in the 1990s. 

The Washington Post’s Catherine Belton reported that Patrushev is one of Putin’s “few close advisors” while Newsweek’s Nick Mordowanec pointed out that Patrushev has been “steadfast in supporting Russia's war in Ukraine since the February 2022 invasion.”

“Patrushev’s sudden emergence after more than two decades as a behind-the-scenes power broker has underlined his role as a driving force in the Kremlin,” Belton explained about the role Patrushev took on following the full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

It's been rumored Patrushev could be a potential successor to Putin and Belton noted that the Secretary of the Russian Security Council was a position roughly equal to that of the U.S. National Security Advisor, which gave his words more power at the time. 

However powerful Patrushev was at the time when he issued his warning to his allies and criticism of the West, it has since crumbled away after he was removed from his 16-year role as the Secretary of Russia's Security Council in favor of former Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu. 

In May 2024, Putin began reshuffling his cabinet and Patrushev lost out and was put in charge of Russia's shipbuilding efforts in a move political analyst Nikolai told Politico was a matter that came "down to honorable retirement." However, Patrushev hasn't gone away. 

In August 2024, Reuters reported that Patrushev was tapped to head Russia's new Maritime Board, which it noted included "councils responsible for developing Russian naval activity and its military fleet, and defending Russian interests in the Arctic, according to a decree issued by Putin."

Whether or not Patrushev will continue to hold the same type of power he had prior to his removal as Secretary of the Russian Security Council is yet to be seen, but his current position may indicate that he has lost favor with Putin.

Photo Credit: Wiki Commons By Kremlin.ru, CC BY 4.0

In November 2023, Patrushev had previously that warned the United States and its allies were increasing the risk of global nuclear conflict, according to Reuters. “The natural consequence of the United States' destructive policies is the deterioration in global security.”