The latest humiliation for Vladimir Putin

How much more can Putin take before he realises he is not just humiliated in the eyes of Russians and the world but is facing one of the biggest defeats in the history of his country? The Kerch Bridge built at a cost of $3.7 billion, linking the Russian mainland to the annexed Crimea, has been severely damaged after what seems to have been a brilliant sabotage mission by the Ukrainians. This has been on the cards for months. General Philip Breedlove, forner Supreme Allied Commander Europe (Saceur), told me a few months ago that the bridge should and could be targeted. The Russians must have been expecting it and yet when it happened it clearly came as a surprise. The Russians are being outsmarted at every turn. A section of the road route along the 12-mile bridge has collapsed, hampering what has been a vital supply route for the Russian troops in southern Ukraine. It's a massive blow to Putin. He opened the bridge in 2018 and the huge explosion will be seen as another spectacular carried out by the Kyiv government to further humiliate the Russian leader. The sinking of the missie cruiser Moskva in April was of course the first spectacular. The second was the attack on a Russian airbase in Crimea. The Ukrainians are attacking at will and there seems to be nothing the Russians can do to stop them. President Zelensky, not that long ago a professional comedian, has become more and more bellicose and seems intent - and why not? - on driving every Russian soldier out of Ukraine, including out of Crimea. The way things are looking this might just be possible. But then what? Even the triumphant Zelensky must think ahead to what the future will be like if Russia suffers such a catastrophic defeat. Will this make the world a safer place or a hundred times more dangerous?