April 4, 2022: -Russia’s Kremlin has rebuffed claims made by the U.S. that President Vladimir Putin felt he was “misled” by his military commanders over Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.

“To our regret and concern, neither the Department of State nor the Pentagon has authentic information regarding what is happening in the Kremlin,” Putin’s spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, told the reporters at a briefing on Thursday.

“They just do not understand what is happening in the Kremlin, they do not understand Russian President Vladimir Putin, they do not understand the mechanism of decision-making, and they do not understand the style of our work,” Peskov further said, according to state news agency Tass.

“This is not regrettable. It causes our concern because such utter misunderstanding results in wrong decisions and careless decisions with terrible consequences.”

The comments came after a declassified U.S. intelligence assessment released on Wednesday suggested Putin had not been given the whole truth regarding Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

On Wednesday, Statements by U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and White House communications director Kate Bedingfield included comments that Putin “felt misled by the Russian military” and that this had resulted in “persistent tension amid Putin and his military leadership.”

Putin is thought to have expected Russian forces to be able to occupy Ukraine with some ease, unseat the Ukrainian government and install a pro-Russian regime as Moscow looks to expand its sphere of influence over former Soviet states.

Although, Russian forces have faced staunch resistance from Ukrainian troops and thousands of volunteer civilian fighters across the country.

To date, Russia has only captured one city, Kherson. In contrast, a much-feared assault on the capital of Kyiv has yet to begin, the second-largest town Kharkiv continues to resist, and the western city of Lviv remains relatively unscathed.

Defense analysts have said that Russian troops were ill-prepared for the invasion, but this may not have been communicated to Putin by military commanders eager to please and reluctant to look incompetent.

On Thursday, analysts told CNBC that Putin’s inner circle is either too loyal or too scared to question the strongman leader. As a result, despite the unpopular war, no one challenged his leadership or instigated a coup against Putin.