With armoured vehicles on the streets of Moscow, two Russian cities in the hands of rebel mercenaries and questions about the loyalty of his security forces, President Putin was facing the most serious challenge of his 23 years in power yesterday. Even if the immediate crisis may now be defused thanks to the intervention of Belarusian president Lukashenko, the damage is done. Sponsored• Russia latest: Putin averts civil war after Wagner rebellionYevgeny Prigozhin speaks inside the headquarters of the Russian southern army military command centre in Rostov, which the Wagner group claimed to have taken control of REUTERSIt is striking that it was Prigozhin who raised the banner of rebellion. This is a man who has been virtually created by the Kremlin. He owes his prominence to his relationship to Putin, from his early restaurant business in 1990s

Source: The Times June 24, 2023 21:30 UTC