The Wagner mutiny in Russia was an “unprecedented” attack on Vladimir Putin’s authority that exposed “cracks” in domestic support for the war in Ukraine, the Foreign Secretary has said.
James Cleverly said the “mask slipped” when warlord Yevgeny Prigozhin “drove a coach and horses” through the Russian president’s case for the invasion during their bitter row.
The feud between Mr Prigozhin and the Kremlin’s military top brass culminated with him sending his mercenaries on a march towards Moscow over the weekend.
It's too early to predict with certainty what the consequences of this might be— Rishi Sunak
A civil war was avoided by a deal brokered between the factions but Mr Cleverly said the chaos showed Ukraine not Russia has the “strategic patience” to win the war.
Defence Secretary Ben Wallace sounded a note of caution about over-analysing the dramatic events of the weekend, warning against “over-crediting” its destabilising impact.
Rishi Sunak said it is “too early” to determine whether the rebellion could spark a regime change in Moscow but said the UK is preparing for a “range of scenarios”.
Giving an urgent statement to MPs on Monday, Mr Cleverly said: “The Russian government’s lies have been exposed by one of President Putin’s own henchman.
“Now, the full story of this weekend’s events and the long-term effects will take some time to become clear and it is not helpful to speculate.
“But Prigozhin’s rebellion is an unprecedented challenge to President Putin’s authority and it is clear that cracks are emerging in the Russian support for the war.”
Mr Cleverly reiterated demands for the Kremlin to withdraw troops from Ukraine, arguing that the Wagner boss’s public row with military leaders had undermined Mr Putin’s case for the war.
“He drove a coach and horses through President Putin’s case for war,” the Foreign secretary said.
“He has made it clear that this war of aggression was driven by the egos of President Putin and the immediate cohort around him.
“They wanted to recreate an imperial Russia as they had in the past and the lives of thousands of Ukrainians and others have been lost in pursuit of one man’s ego.”
Mr Cleverly added that “everybody should note that one of Putin’s proteges had publicly destroyed his case for the war in Ukraine”.
Speaking at the Rusi conference on Monday evening, the Defence Secretary warned against allowing Mr Prigozhin’s challenge to distract from the main focus of supporting Kyiv.
While it “directly challenged the narrative for war”, he said: “We shouldn’t necessarily over-credit the destabilisation, that somehow this is a massive derailment of the Kremlin.”
“It was just another of the cracks we have been seeing in public discourse,” he added.
Liz Truss, the former prime minister and foreign secretary, urged Britain and its allies to “have a plan in the case of the implosion of Russia”.
Mr Prigozhin had demanded the ousting of defence minister Sergei Shoigu, who he has frequently clashed with during the invasion of Ukraine.
The mercenaries were just 120 miles from Moscow before a deal brokered with the Kremlin halted the uprising.
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.
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.
Speaking to broadcasters, 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.
In the Commons, Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said that Ukraine was making “gradual but steady tactical progress” during its long-awaited counter-offensive.
“Russia does not appear to have the uncommitted ground forces needed to counter the multiple threats it is now facing from Ukraine, which extend over 200km from Bakhmut to the eastern bank of the Dnipro River,” he said.
