Wagner chief Prigozhin reportedly killed, but has Putin cooked his own goose?

In fact, Prigozhin’s apparent elimination is likely to exacerbate that weakness rather than lead to a magical reassertion of Putin’s authority.

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Thursday, August 24, 2023

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In fact, Prigozhin’s apparent elimination is likely to exacerbate that weakness rather than lead to a magical reassertion of Putin’s authority.
That’s a significant departure from the Kremlin’s previous modus operandi, whereby those in positions of power and influence were protected by Putin.
Although Prigozhin eventually departed from that, he went out of his way for many years – even after his mutiny – to demonstrate his loyalty to Putin.
Following the Wagner revolt it seemed perplexing for Putin to give Prigozhin and his Wagner co-conspirators a public assurance they would be safe from retribution.
The crash has therefore not only killed a Putin rival, but also permanently erased Wagner’s senior command structure.
A final important puzzle concerns why the Kremlin waited so long to rid itself of Prigozhin.