Russia sought to restore calm after an aborted mutiny by Wagner Group mercenaries over the weekend, while Western allies assessed how President Vladimir Putin might reassert authority and what it could mean for the war in Ukraine.
Russia sought to restore calm on Monday after an aborted mutiny by Wagner Group mercenaries over the weekend, while Western allies assessed how President Vladimir Putin might reassert authority and what it could mean for the war in Ukraine.
Ending their short-lived mutiny, Wagner fighters halted their rapid advance on Moscow, withdrew from the southern Russian city of Rostov and headed back to their bases late on Saturday under a deal that guaranteed their safety. Their commander, Yevgeny Prigozhin, would move to Belarus under the deal mediated by Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko.
Monday has been declared a non-working day in Moscow to allow time for things to settle, and there was little evidence of increased security in the capital on Sunday evening.
Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu, one of the main targets of Prigozhin’s anger, visited Russian troops involved in the military operation in Ukraine, state-run RIA news agency reported on Monday while providing no details on when and where.
But Putin, who has held power for more than two decades, has still to comment publicly since the de-escalation of one of the biggest challenges to his rule.
Confusion over the weekend’s extraordinary events has left governments, both friendly and hostile to Russia, groping for answers to what could happen next in the country with the world’s largest nuclear arsenal.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken suggested the turmoil could take months to play out.
“We’ve seen more cracks emerge in the Russian facade,” Blinken told NBC’s “Meet the Press” programme on Sunday.
Russia’s Deputy Foreign Minister Andrei Rudenko held talks in Beijing on Sunday. It was unclear if his visit to Russia’s strongest ally was precipitated by the Wagner mutiny.
