Where is Putin? After the dramatic end of the armed uprising that posed the biggest threat to Vladimir Putin’s nearly 25-year rule, an unsettling calm descended upon Russia.
The insurrection’s mastermind has become unusually quiet. Since calling the mutiny “treason” and threatening “harsh” punishment that never materialized, the president hasn’t been seen in public.
A transfixed global audience watched in astonishment as Yevgeny Prigozhin’s mercenary troops advanced hundreds of miles toward Moscow at breakneck speed before Prigozhin abruptly called off the attack and agreed to go into exile with all charges dropped in a late-night deal.
The quick succession of events left the US and Europe perplexed about the political ramifications of an uprising that shattered Vladimir Putin’s image as Russia’s supreme leader. The crisis developed as Russia was deeply divided over the waning conflict in Ukraine, which is the largest war in Europe since World War II. A Ukrainian counteroffensive is still attempting to drive Russian forces from occupied territories.
Must read: Here’s how world leaders reacted to the Wagner’s mutiny against Putin
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the Wagner mercenary group’s revolt was a “direct challenge” to President Putin’s authority and “raises profound questions,” in an interview Sunday on CBS’s Face the Nation. “We can’t speculate or know exactly where that’s going to go. We do know that Putin has a lot more to answer for in the weeks and months ahead.”
A person with knowledge of the situation claims that the US had intelligence a few days ago that Prigozhin was preparing to launch an armed attack against Russian defence officials.
According to the Chinese Foreign Ministry, Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang met with Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrey Rudenko in Beijing on Sunday to discuss global and regional issues of mutual interest. China has strengthened its ties with President Putin and has resisted joining US-led sanctions over the war.
Ma Zhaoxu, China’s vice foreign minister, met with Rudenko on Sunday and vowed to protect the two nations’ shared interests in the “complex and grim” global context. The Russian uprising was covered by Chinese state media, and the Global Times published a piece by former editor-in-chief Hu Xijin that examined various scenarios, including regime change.
The Chinese side expressed support for the Russian leadership’s efforts to stabilize the situation in the country, the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a website statement.
Even North Korea appeared concerned. Vice Foreign Minister Im Chon Il “expressed firm belief that the recent armed rebellion in Russia would be successfully put down” at a meeting with the Russian ambassador, North Korea’s Central News Agency reported.
The agreement that ended Prigozhin’s uprising and was mediated by his ally, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, has not been addressed by 70-year-old Vladimir Putin. The Kremlin claimed that President Putin made a promise to permit the Wagner leader to visit Belarus and to drop mutiny charges against him and other rebel fighters.
Where is Putin?
“Putin had to make concessions and actually surrender, and instead of defeating Prigozhin, he had to negotiate with him and give security guarantees, demonstrating in public his vulnerability,” said Kirill Rogov, a former Russian government advisor who now heads Re: Russia, a Vienna-based think tank. “Previously, Putin absolutely didn’t allow anyone to talk to him in the language of public ultimatums.”
Since announcing in an audio message on Telegram late Saturday that his forces were withdrawing to prevent bloodshed, Prigozhin’s whereabouts are unknown, and he hasn’t made any comments. As he was being driven away from a military installation in the southern Russian city of Rostov-on-Don that Wagner had taken control of early in the mutiny, crowds cheered and shook his hand in a video posted on social media.
In a late-night phone call, President Putin thanked Lukashenko for leading the negotiations and coming to an agreement, according to Belta, the state-run news service of Belarus.
Russia started easing emergency restrictions in an effort to swiftly reestablish normalcy. On Sunday, hastily erected roadblocks on Moscow-bound highways were taken down, but officials said Monday will still be a holiday as declared by Mayor Sergei Sobyanin following the establishment of a “counter-terrorist regime” in the city.
Monday’s trading on the Moscow Exchange will proceed as usual, the Bank of Russia announced in a statement.
Regional authorities in Lipetsk, Voronezh, and Rostov-on-Don reported that Wagner troops had left their territories and were making their way to their field bases.
