As the troops of the Wagner group leave the regions bordering Moscow, after announcing their withdrawal on Saturday evening, the effects of Yevgeny Prigojine’s failed insurrection against the Kremlin are being felt internationally this Sunday, June 25.
Across the Atlantic, the White House was particularly attentive to Wagner’s abortive coup, which, according to the head of American diplomacy, Antony Blinken, reveals “real cracks” reaching President Vladimir Putin.
“It directly challenged Putin’s authority. So this raises real questions and reveals real cracks “at the highest level of the Russian state, said this Sunday the American secretary of state, during an intervention on the CBS channel.
But, “to the extent that Russia’s attention is diverted […], it creates, I think, an additional advantage” for Ukraine in the midst of an offensive against Russian forces, he added. Doing the rounds on Sunday TV shows, he again said it was “too early” to speculate on the impact of the crisis on Russia or the war in Ukraine.
“It’s a changing picture,” he said, “but the fact that you have someone on the inside questioning Putin’s authority and directly questioning why he launched this assault on Ukraine is in itself something very powerful. »
US President Joe Biden met on Sunday with several European leaders, including Emmanuel Macron and British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak. A telephone conversation in which he referred to “the situation in Russia”, renewing his “support for Ukraine”. Antony Blinken himself discussed the crisis in Russia on Saturday with his counterparts from the G7 countries, as well as Poland and Turkey.
During this day with an uncertain outcome, experts and political leaders also pointed to the apparent fragility of the strategy of the head of the Kremlin. For his part, Volodymyr Zelensky spoke on Twitter in a message charging the Russian president, highlighting the “total weakness” of his opponent: “The weakness of Russia is obvious”, he estimated, insisting on the “stupidity” of Moscow. “No one can lie about him anymore,” concluded the Ukrainian head of state.
He then assured to have exchanged with his American counterpart Joe Biden on the abortive rebellion of the paramilitary group Wagner, the day before, in Russia. “We discussed the course of hostilities and the processes taking place in Russia. The world must pressure Russia until international order is restored,” the Ukrainian president posted on his social media, hailing “a positive and inspiring conversation” with Mr. Biden.
