Russia: the one-day rebellion of the Wagner group

The world held its breath on Saturday 24 June when it learned that Wagner’s troops, 25,000 strong, had turned against the Russian army and were threatening to overthrow Putin’s government. After a number of highly critical statements by Prigozhin against the Russian General Staff, his militia seized an army camp before forming a column and marching towards Moscow. The reasons of this rebellion remain a mystery, although Prigozhin claims to have acted for the survival of his militia, which was attacked first and by surprise.

By the afternoon, Belarusian President Lukashenko had taken on the role of mediator in the crisis, offering to welcome Wagner’s troops to his country to avoid a massacre. A tripartite agreement was quickly reached and the mutiny was brought to an end. On Monday evening, Putin congratulated himself on having avoided civil war, but the episode revealed the fragility of his power. Prigozhin arrived in Belarus on Wednesday and, despite the amnesty promised to him, his fate is the subject of much speculation.

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