Mutinous Russian mercenary fighters, belonging to the Wagner private army led by former Putin ally Yevgeny Prigozhin, made rapid progress towards Moscow after seizing a southern city overnight.
Russia’s military launched airstrikes in an attempt to halt their advance, but appeared unable to effectively slow them down.
President Vladimir Putin, facing the most significant domestic crisis in his 23-year rule, vowed to crush the armed mutiny, comparing it to Russia’s Civil War a century ago.
The situation, although still unfolding with some details unclear, represents a major challenge to Putin’s power since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February of the previous year.
The Wagner fighters had already captured the city of Rostov and embarked on a 1,100-kilometer race towards Moscow.
Troop carriers and a flatbed truck carrying a tank were seen racing past the city of Voronezh, with a helicopter firing on them, but no significant resistance was reported along the highway.
Reports showed small groups of police manning machine gun positions on Moscow’s southern outskirts, while authorities in the Lipetsk region advised residents to stay home. A fuel depot in Voronezh was ablaze, and video footage captured the moment it exploded in a fireball after a helicopter flew by. Prigozhin accused Russia’s military of targeting civilian sites from the air to impede their progress.
Prigozhin claimed that his men were on a “march for justice” to remove corrupt and incompetent commanders responsible for mishandling the war in Ukraine. In a televised address from the Kremlin, Putin declared that Russia’s existence was under threat, vowing harsh actions against those who betrayed the country and resorted to armed insurrection.
The situation in Rostov-on-Don, where Wagner forces had taken control of key military sites to oust the top brass, was described as difficult by Putin. He promised decisive measures to stabilize the situation there. The loyalty of Russia’s security forces, particularly the Russian National Guard, was highlighted as crucial to resolving the crisis.
Foreign countries, including the UK and the United States, closely monitored the situation in nuclear-armed Russia. The UK’s defense ministry stated that Russia faced its most significant security challenge in recent times. Security was tightened in Moscow, with increased presence on the streets and Red Square being blocked off by metal barriers.
Prigozhin, denying allegations of staging a military coup, asserted that his forces were not going to surrender. He accused the military’s top brass of deception and claimed his fighters were seeking to eliminate anyone obstructing their path. The Russian Defense Ministry labeled the Wagner Group’s actions as a criminal adventure and appealed to the mercenaries to contact representatives for their security.
