The problem with dictators is that they often stay on way longer than Western democracies had thought. Think of Hitler (more than 20 years since the Bierkeller uprising), Mussolini (even longer), Stalin, Lukashenko (Belarus) but also an Assad (Syria). Putin may be more resourceful and persistent than most anticipate. Don't forget that people have the tendency to rally around their leader, no matter how dreadful the ordeal he has gotten them in. The relentless bombarding of German cities by the Allies during WW2 has proven this. The Allies thought that its would break the will of the German people. The opposite happened. They saw Hitler as their only savior, and were prepared to hang their own when they weren’t prepared to continue the fight.