Vladimir Putin survived the greatest threat to his 23-year rule over the weekend, which took the form of a mutiny led by former ally Yevgeny Prigozhin, but questions remain over how long those within his inner circle are willing to support him.
Wagner mercenary forces seized the southern Russian city of Rostov-on-Don overnight Friday, and were 120 miles outside of Moscow when Prigozhin announced he had struck a deal with the Kremlin and called off his ‘march for justice’.
On Monday night Putin made a defiant televised address, saying he had deliberately let Saturday’s 24-hour mutiny by the Wagner Group go on as long as it did to avoid bloodshed, and that it had reinforced national unity.
Prigozhin for his part has insisted that he marched on Moscow to stop the Kremlin taking control of his mercenary army, and denied a plot to overthrow Putin and the Russian government. It is understood that he has agreed to go into exile in Belarus.
But analysts have said that Putin has never looked weaker, suggesting the mutiny showed how simple an armed rebellion would be in Russia with the main bulk of its military forces currently occupied in a bloody war across the border in Ukraine.
Vladimir Putin (pictured on Monday) survived the greatest threat to his 23-year rule over the weekend, which took the form of a mutiny led by former ally Yevgeny Prigozhin, but questions remain over how long those within his inner circle are willing to support him
In the face of the significant challenge to Putin’s leadership, senior Russian officials have largely rallied around the Russian despot, but it remains to be seen how long they are willing to support him in the face of mounting opposition.
Meanwhile, Putin will have serious questions for many of his top allies. Those in charge of security in particular will come under intense scrutiny for their failure to warn the Kremlin of Wagner’s threat, and to stop their advance on Moscow.
Here, MailOnline looks at some of the key figures inside Putin’s inner circle…
Dmitry Medvedev: Deputy Chairman of Russian Security Council
Dmitry Medvedev, the Deputy Chairman of the Russian Security Council, once stepped into Putin’s shoes as President in 2008 for a four year term.
During that time, Putin became the Russian Prime Minister, in a move seen as largely symbolic, with Putin maintaining ultimate power.
Nevertheless, Medvedev’s tenure as President raised hopes that there might be a future in which Russia becomes closer with the West.
The now 57-year-old promised to modernise and liberalise Russia, and often spoke of his love of tech gadgets and of blogging. He even visited California and was given a brand new iPhone 4 from Apple founder Steve Jobs.
But in 2012, Putin resumed his role as President, and Medvedev became Prime Minister, a role he held until 2020, when he was handed the position of Deputy Chairman of the Security Council of Russia.
Since Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, he has frequently embarked on tirades on the Telegram messaging app to he followers about Russia’s place in the world, and his hatred of the West – and has even called on Putin to nuke enemies of his motherland.
Dmitry Medvedev: Deputy Chairman of Russian Security Council
Observers have said his new persona is a desperate attempt to retain relevance in Moscow’s political circles, which have become significantly darker since he left the presidency and Putin reclaimed the top job in the Kremlin.
Meanwhile, there have been rumours of Medvedev’s increasing alcohol consumption, with Putin telling him to resign as Prime Minister, instead handing him the token job as deputy chairman of the Russian Security Council – which, as with many other political organisation in Moscow, Putin has ultimate control over.
Some analysts see Medvedev as positioning himself for a new run at the Kremlin presidency if Putin is forced out by ill health or through dissatisfaction.
But there was no sign of this in the wake of the Wagner revolt at the weekend, with the former Russian president coming out against Wagner.
He said he was worried about the mercenaries gaining control of Russian weapons as the uprising roiled on Saturday.
‘The history of mankind hasn’t yet seen the largest arsenal of nuclear weapons under control by bandits,’ he said. ‘Such a crisis will not be limited by just one country’s borders, the world will be put on the brink of destruction.’
He added that ‘we won’t allow such a turn of events.’
Medvedev was so fearful that Wagner might seize control in Moscow that he is suspected to have secretly flown out of Moscow for Oman in the aftermath of the weekend ‘coup march’ on the Russian capital, according to a report.
The reason for his plane’s trip to Oman is unclear and the Russian state media has not listed any official meetings for him.
Sergey Lavrov: Foreign Minister
Sergey Lavrov has been Putin’s Foreign Minister for nearly two decades, and has been a loyal servant in pushing Russian propaganda on the world stage.
He often accuses the West of transgressions against Russia, even when Moscow is the clear aggressor, and frequently backs dictators to further the Kremlin’s goals.
He is a member of Putin’s Silovik – or inner circle – meaning a person who works for one of the state organisations that is authorised to use force against civilians.
While the 73-year-old did not appear publicly during the Wagner mutiny, he wasted no time in suggesting that Ukraine’s western allies were somehow behind the mercenary group’s uprising.
He has said Russia is investigating whether Western intelligence services were involved in Prigozhin’s rebellion and in attempting to orchestrate a coup.
Sergey Lavrov: Foreign Minister
He also told Russian media that US Ambassador Lynne Tracy had contacted Russian representatives on Saturday to stress that the US was not involved in the mutiny.
Lavrov also quoted Tracy as saying the mutiny was Russia’s internal affair.
Asked whether there was any evidence that neither Ukrainian nor Western intelligence services were involved in the mutiny, Lavrov replied:
‘I work in a department that does not collect evidence about illegal actions, but we have such structures, and I assure you, they already understand this.
And amid questions over what will become of the Wagner private military company and specifically its operations in Africa, he said the firm would continue to operate in Mali and the Central African Republic.
He told RT that Mali and CAR both maintained official contacts with Moscow alongside their relations with Wagner, adding: ‘Several hundred servicemen are working in the CAR as instructors; this work, of course, will be continued’.
Sergei Shoigu: Defence Minister
In announcing his armed uprising, Yevgeny Prigozhin cited the actions of Putin’s defence minister Sergei Shoigu as one of his main grievances.
One of Prigozhin’s principal demands had been that Shoigu be sacked, along with Russia’s top general, citing their failures in the on-going war in Ukraine and corruption within the armed forces.
Shoigu, 68, assumed the position of defence minister in 2012, and like Sergey Lavrov, is among Putin’s exclusive Silovik group.
As head of the Russian army, he has overseen the war in Ukraine, which has proved disastrous ever since Moscow’s forces attempted to seize Kyiv in February 2022.
This failed spectacularly, and they were pushed back east where they lost significant ground last year and are now facing down yet another counteroffensive.
Despite these failures, in a show of stability and control, the Kremlin on Monday night showed Putin meeting with top security, law enforcement and military officials, including Shoigu. Putin thanked his team for their work over the weekend, implying support for the embattled defence minister.
Earlier, the authorities released a video of Shoigu reviewing troops in Ukraine, in an apparent message to Prigozhin that Putin would not be caving to the demands.
Sergei Shoigu, Putin’s Defence Minister (right) and General Valery Gerasimov, Russia’s Chief of the General Staff (left)
General Valery Gerasimov: Chief of the General Staff
Like Shoigu, Prigozhin also blasted General Staff chief General Valery Gerasimov in a video filled with expletive-ridden insults as his Wagner forces seized Rostov.
He accused them of failing to provide his troops with enough ammunition during the fight for the Ukrainian town of Bakhmut, the war’s longest and bloodiest battle.
Unlike Shoigu, Gerasimov, 67, has not appeared in public since the mutiny, leading to speculation that he may have been captured by Wagner.
He is directly responsible for running the war in Ukraine, and could be the first in-line for the chopping block should Putin decide he needs more military changes.
Mikhail Mishustin: Prime Minister
Mikhail Mishustind has been Russia’s Prime Minister since 2020, when he took over from Dmitry Medvedev.
As Wagner’s forces marched on Moscow, he made no public comment, with some speculating that he may have been waiting to see the outcome of the rebellion before picking sides.
Mikhail Mishustin: Prime Minister
As it became clear that Wagner was not going to overthrow Putin, Mishustind, 57, called on Russians to rally around their president as ‘one team’.
In comments on Monday, he acknowledged that Russia had faced ‘a challenge to its stability’, and called for public loyalty.
‘We need to act together, as one team, and maintain the unity of all forces, rallying around the president,’ he told a televised government meeting.
Alexander Bortnikov: FSB Director
As director of the Federal Security Service (FSB) – the successor to the Soviet Union’s feared KGB – Alexander Bortnikov is another of Putin’s inner sanctum, with their alliance dating back to working for the USSR’s security agency in Leningrad.
He is also another of Putin’s inner circle that remained silent during Wagner’s mutiny.
However, his agency was the one to announce charges against Wagner – and Bortnikov perhaps thought that actions speak louder than words.
The FSB and its chief will still have some uncomfortable questions to answer.
According to the US-based think tank Institute for the Study of War, the Kremlin ‘faces a deeply unstable equilibrium’ after the deal to end the rebellion.
Alexander Bortnikov: FSB Director
And, the ISW said, the Kremlin’s apparent surprise at Prigozhin’s rebellion doesn’t reflect at all well on the FSB.
The ISW noted that Prigozhin ‘consistently escalated’ his rhetoric against the Russian Defense Ministry before starting his revolt ‘and Putin failed to mitigate this risk.’
Amid reports that US intelligence services were aware of Prigozhin’s plan, Bortnikov will be forced to answer why he didn’t raise the alarm.
On Tuesday, the FSB said its investigation found that those involved in the mutiny ‘ceased activities directed at committing the crime’ and dropped the charges against Wagner.
Nikolai Patrushev: Secretary of the Russian Security Council
Nikolai Patrushev, the Secretary of the Russian Security Council, has previously been described as Russia’s most ‘hawkish hawk’.
He is one of just three Putin loyalists to have served the Russian president since the 1970s in St Petersburg, when the country’s second city was still named Leningrad.
Russian experts say few hold as much sway over the Russian leader as Patrushev, having worked with him at the KGB during the Soviet era, but also replacing him as the head of the FSB – a role he held from 1999 to 2008.
Nikolai Patrushev: Secretary of the Russian Security Council
In the build up to Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, Patrushev pushed the idea that the West was out to get Russia, and that the US wanted to ‘break up’ the country.
He has since peddled a number of anti-Western conspiracy theories.
Since the mutiny, Patrushev has remained silent, likely working in the shadows to shore up support for Putin.
He was present along with Shoigu and other top security officials when Putin thanked them for quelling the uprising. But like Bortnikov, Patrushev could have some awkward questions to answer over Russia’s preparedness for Wagner’s mutiny.
Sergey Naryshkin: Director of the Foreign Intelligence Service
Along with Patrushev and Bortnikov, Naryshkin is the third of Putin’s close allies that date back to the days of working for the FSB in Leningrad – and has remained at Putin’s side for much of his political career.
But their close relationship did not stop the Russian president from giving Naryshkin a very public dressing down when he hesitated when giving his assessment on the situation in Ukraine in the days leading up to the 2022 invasion.
Naryshkin has spoken since the Wagner mutiny, saying it was clear that Prigozhin’s attempt to destabilise society and ignite a fratricidal civil war has failed, the TASS news agency reported.
Like his close allies Bortnikov and Patrushev, Naryshkin may also have some tough questions to answer when Putin launches his inquest into Wagner’s actions.
Sergey Naryshkin: Director of the Foreign Intelligence Service (centre)
Margarita Simonyan: Head of RT
Margarita Simonyan, the head of Russia Today – one of the Kremlin’s most prominent vehicles of propaganda – has long hailed Prigozhin, Wagner and the group’s brutal approach to the war in Ukraine.
Perhaps for this reason, one of Prigozhin’s biggest cheerleaders was nowhere to be seen over the weekend as his forces closed in on Moscow.
In fact, she has since claimed to have missed the shocking events altogether.
Speaking after the weekend, she said she was spending time cruising down a local river as Prigozhin hit global headlines with his mutiny.
She has since argued for dropping the charges against him and his troops, saying that Russian legal norms – which punish treason severely – ‘are not the commandments of Christ or the tablets of Moses’.
Margarita Simonyan: Head of RT
‘In some exceptional, critical cases, it turns out that legal norms cease to fulfil their function of protecting law and order and stability, but perform the reverse function, then these legal norms take a running jump,’ she said.
Over the weekend, the Kremlin pledged not to prosecute Mr Prigozhin and his fighters after he stopped the revolt on Saturday, even though President Vladimir Putin had branded them as traitors.
Vladimir Solovyov: Propagandist in chief
Along with Simonyan, Vladimir Solovyov has long been seen as Putin’s Propagandist in Chief through his television shows on channel Russia-1.
He regularly hosts groups of hard-line Russian hawks, calling on Moscow to escalate its war against Ukraine and to strike the West for its support of Kyiv.
As host, Solovyov rarely takes an impartial position, and often joins these calls.
Speaking on Sunday on his television Show, Solovyov said he was shocked at the country’s preparedness that allowed Wagner troops to close in on Moscow.
But he also praised Russian officials for avoiding bloodshed.
‘On this day, we found out a lot about our own country. We turned out to be much wiser than anyone might have thought… Yesterday, our leadership demonstrated strength and wisdom,’ he said.
‘Most importantly, it demonstrated strength without a bloodlust.’
Vladimir Solovyov: Propagandist in chief
Ramzan Kadyrov: Chechen Republic Warlord
Like Prigozhin, Ramzan Kadyrov fancies himself as somewhat of a warlord, and has previously sided with the Wagner leader in his criticism of the military leadership.
As the Head of the Chechen Republic, which Russia seized by force in the Second Chechen War, Kadyrov commands a force of around 12,000 soldiers.
Prior to the war, his fighters were said to be elite soldiers, although the fighting in Ukraine has exposed them as being less effective than initially thought.
Nevertheless, as news spread of Wagner’s apparent betrayal of Putin, the Kadyrovites sprung into action.
Ramzan Kadyrov: Chechen Republic Warlord
In a clear signal of support for Putin, Kadyrov declared that ‘the mutiny needs to be suppressed’ as Chechen fighters were deployed to Russia’s Rostov region to fight Prigozhin’s Wagner loyalists if the mutiny led to bloodshed.
While the fighting was averted by Prigozhin’s deal, Kadyrov’s willingness to send his troops into action against fellow Russians leaves no question over his loyalty.
Viktor Zolotov: Director of Russian National Guard
Another senior figure present at Putin’s meeting with security officials on Monday was Viktor Zolotov, the head of the national guard.
Zolotov’s unit has suffered huge casualties in the on-going war in Ukraine, and some have suggested that he could hold a grudge over this, and he has not spoken out since Prigozhin’s rebellion.
However, The Times writes that he is unlikely to have the courage to plot a coup against Putin, and his presence at the meeting suggests he has not fallen out of favour in the corridors of power in Moscow.
Viktor Zolotov: Director of Russian National Guard
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