Putin Warned 2-3 Days Ago About Prigozhin's Possible Rebellion, The Washington Post

As of the morning of June 24, when Yevgeny Prigozhin, the leader of the Wagner group, began his attempt at insurrection, Vladimir Putin was reportedly unable to act decisively, according to Ukrainian and other European security officials. This was reported by The Washington Post.

Officials noted that for most of the day, no orders were given. Security services had warned the Russian president at least two to three days beforehand that Prigozhin was preparing a possible rebellion. Measures were taken to enhance security at several strategic sites, including the Kremlin, where presidential guard personnel increased and more weapons were distributed, but otherwise no actions were taken, these officials stated.

A European security official, speaking on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the intelligence discussions, said, “Putin had time to make a decision to prevent the rebellion and arrest the organizers.”

This account of the resistance confirmed by Western government officials offers the most detailed glimpse into the paralysis and chaos prevailing within the Kremlin during the first hours of what became the most serious challenge to Putin's 23-year presidency. This corroborates comments made last week by CIA Director William J. Burns that military personnel and decision-makers “seemed distracted” during the 36-hour insurrection by the Russian security services.

At the local level, many could not believe that the Wagner rebellion could occur without some accord with the Kremlin. Despite this, on the morning of the rebellion, Putin addressed the nation via emergency television broadcast, promising to take tough measures to halt the insurgents and issued a decree for the arrest of Prigozhin for “marching on Moscow.”

A senior Ukrainian security official stated, “Local authorities did not receive orders from the leadership. From our perspective, this is the biggest sign of an unhealthy situation within Russia. The authoritarian system is structured such that without very clear orders from the leadership, people do nothing. When the leadership is in a state of confusion and disorder, the same situation exists at the local level and is even worse.”

The Washington Post reports that the chaos prevailing in the Kremlin also reflects deepening discord within Russia's security and military structures regarding the conduct of the war in Ukraine, with many, including military personnel within the upper echelons of the security services, supporting Prigozhin’s efforts to remove Russia's top military leadership, European security officials have said.

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