For a player like Putin, admitting defeat is likely not a political option.
For his personal safety, the best option at this point may be just disappearing - faking his own death, for instance, and living under assumed identity. I am not sure he's got what it takes to do that, though.
It's strange why this didn't occurred to me, though it sounds very likely. Only time will tell, hope we have it
Oh, I think Putin is too much of a coward to go all out in a mushroom cloud. Which effectively means Russia will eventually be forced to back down - question is, when and at what cost.
So true. When and at what cost...