Putin has a real image problem here: if he has "total control" then he's responsible/accountable for the fall-out; if he's "lost control" then he's not as powerful as he thinks.
It doesn't seem that Putin cares much about his image abroad, and his image in Russia is better than ever. The Russian media does everything to blame the Ukraine for this.
"Wer Visionen hat, sollte zum Arzt gehen." - Helmut Schmidt