The Russian Front Is Weaker Than It Was Yesterday

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Most Western countries have watched and kept their silence. They haven't celebrated, they didn't cheer it on for fear of being seen to try to break up Russia. But I think they are recognizing that this has an impact,. as Oli has said, on the sense of Russian stamina in this campaign. And what is now becoming apparent is that actually a long war is accelerating the stresses and strains, the decay of the Putin regime.

Yevgeny Prigozhin, nicknamed “Putin’s chef”, leads the Wagner Group of mercenaries fighting alongside Russian forces in Ukraine. He had lambasted Russia’s military leaders for months, but the mutiny he began over the weekend lasted less than a day. Nevertheless it is a sharp blow to President Vladimir Putin’s leadership—and may prove to be a boon for Ukraine’s counter-offensive.

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