Rishi Sunak has said it is “too early” to determine whether the chaos triggered by the Wagner mercenary mutiny in Russia will provoke a regime change for Vladimir Putin.
The Prime Minister said Britain is preparing for a “range of scenarios” after the halted rebellion cast uncertainty over the future of the Russian president.
Culminating a bitter feud, warlord Yevgeny Prigozhin’s troops were just 120 miles from Moscow before he called off the uprising after a deal brokered with the Kremlin.
The image of Mr Putin’s iron grip on Moscow has been dented by images of the private army leaving Ukraine to seize a military headquarters in a southern Russian city.
It's too early to predict with certainty what the consequences of this might be— Rishi Sunak
Mr Sunak said he agrees with US secretary of state Antony Blinken’s assessment that the dispute has exposed “real cracks” in the Russian president’s authority.
“It’s a situation that we’ve been monitoring for some time, in the instability that will be caused by Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine,” the PM said during a visit to Nottingham.
Pressed whether it could precipitate a regime change, Mr Sunak told broadcasters: “It’s too early to predict with certainty what the consequences of this might be.
“But of course we are prepared, as we always would be, for a range of scenarios.”
Mr Sunak shared a call over the weekend with the US’s Joe Biden, France’s Emmanuel Macron and Germany’s Olaf Scholz.
Mr Prigozhin had demanded the ousting of defence minister Sergei Shoigu, who he has frequently clashed with during the invasion of Ukraine.
Mr Putin accused Mr Prigozhin of being behind a “treason” before dropping charges after his former ally agreed to stand his troops down and move to Belarus.
Downing Street also declined to discuss the impact of the chaos in Russia, during what the Prime Minister’s official spokesman described as “relatively an early stage”.
Asked if the UK is opposed to regime change in Moscow, he said: “Issues of regime in Russia are for Russia to resolve first and foremost.”
Foreign Secretary James Cleverly, who has shared a call with his G7 counterparts, will update the Commons on the situation on Monday afternoon.
