Two days after a mutiny by mercenaries threatened Russian President Vladimir Putin’s 23-year grip on power senior officials of his government rallied around him, with many questions yet to be answered. On the first working day after fighters of the powerful Wagner Group seized a military headquarters and marched on Moscow, officials still gave no details about the deal that abruptly ended the mutiny. Mikhail Mishustin, who leads Putin’s cabinet as his appointed prime minister, 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. There was no word about the revolt from Putin himself, who had said on Saturday the rebellion put Russia’s very existence under threat and vowed to punish those behind it. The Kremlin released a video from him congratulating participants of an industrial forum, containing no indication of when it had been filmed.—Reuters
