Whether casting doubt on the future of the UK or sniping at Donald Trump, recent weeks have seen Sergei Lavrov, Russia’s foreign minister, doing what he does best: trolling the West.

In many ways this demonstrates what Lavrov has become, not the shaper of Russian policy but an angry propagandist. It also points to the flailing nature of Vladimir Putin’s government.

Speaking at the Russian-organised International Youth Festival in Yekaterinburg, Lavrov questioned “what will happen to the country called Great Britain” after the recent agreement between the SNP, Plaid Cymru and Sinn Féin and their plans for independence referendums, when they said that “Westminster’s time is coming to an end”.

He also called the war in Ukraine “not just [Joe] Biden’s war but also of the new US administration”, pointing to Moscow’s increasing scepticism towards Trump’s White House.

And as if that wasn’t enough, at the UN General Assembly last month, Lavrov criticised the West for persisting in its “attempts to retain its privileges and impose its ‘rules’ on everyone else”. He blamed this on “the dictatorship of a single hegemon” – a clear reference to the United States.

These are all familiar Russian propaganda talking points. They also show the changing tone coming out of Putin’s Russia.

In the earlier stage of Trump’s second presidency, when Moscow still hoped it could persuade the US President to pressure Kyiv into an ugly peace, there was far less willingness to attack the US. That has clearly changed. As Republican defeat in November’s midterm elections looks more probable, Moscow seems largely to be writing Trump off, anticipating a bad-tempered policy gridlock in Washington instead.

When it comes to the UK, Russia has long had a complex, contradictory view. There is still a huge degree of Anglophilia in the country – from British sports teams to cultural output, Russians continue to be fascinated. But at the same time, the country is mocked as a has-been nation whose claims to geopolitical relevance are a distant past.

When a Trident missile test failed last year, outspoken Russian talk show host Olga Skabeyeva derided the country “formerly Great Britain – now we call it ‘Little Britain’”.

The Kremlin would obviously be delighted if Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland moved forward with seeking independence. The resulting disruptions, dislocations and recriminations would paralyse the UK and partially remove one of the remaining major players from the game.

If this were to happen, we can anticipate not just warm words from the likes of Lavrov but also plenty of Russian disinformation operations designed to amplify voices from every side of the debate.

Lavrov’s comments also expose Putin’s own insecurities. There is a degree of nervous “there but for the grace of god” schadenfreude in how one former empire that has lost much of its global status pokes fun at another to help it feel better.

Lavrov’s descent into trolling, though, is not just a calculated political ploy, it also marks a professional slide that has lasted for 12 years now – since he was left out of discussions over Russia’s annexing of Crimea in 2014. Despite being Putin’s foreign minister, he no longer has much role in formulating foreign policy.

Yuri Ushakov, Putin’s foreign policy adviser, seems to be shaping the Kremlin’s outreach to the White House, while former defence minister and now secretary of the Security Council, Sergei Shoigu, is emerging as the main interlocutor with Russia’s allies in Asia and the Middle East. This means that multiple people seem to speak for Putin, none of them Lavrov, which adds further confusion in Western capitals.

With Russia’s relations with Europe in permafrost and neither Africa or Latin America really mattering to Putin, a man who was once a giant of international diplomacy – a chain-smoking, gravel-voiced legend who could charm as easily as confront – increasingly now seems a petulant has-been, with little to do beyond grumbling and sniping.

Lavrov has reportedly requested permission to retire for over a decade. Even though at 76 he is now over the mandatory retirement age, Putin refuses. The Russian president still sees value in his acerbic-tongued foreign minister, even if it is just as a troller-in-chief.

No one questions Lavrov’s skill with a put-down, and his reputation to command an audience. This is something that Putin clearly appreciates, especially as his relations with the West become ever more adversarial. We have seen this clearly in recent weeks.

As with so many other aspects of late Putinism politics, real power rests not with the institutions of government, but with Putin, his cronies and his personal staff. Lavrov’s comments highlight the anger, insecurity and vindictiveness at the heart of Putin’s foreign policies.