Putin is weakened – but the endgame could be a dangerous one

Editorial: It is remarkable that the Wagner mercenary chief is a free man – but the historical omens for Putin do not look good

The president’s divide and rule strategy has come back to bite him (AP)

Although the immediate crisis and threat of civil war in Russia has passed, this is a dangerous moment – not just for Vladimir Putin but also for Ukraine and its allies in the West.

The Russian president may never recover his authority after the dramatic events on Saturday, which saw Yevgeny Prigozhin and his Wagner Group mercenaries march to within 125 miles of Moscow in protest at the handling of the war in Ukraine by Russia’s military leaders. While he called off his armed mutiny to prevent bloodshed and, according to the Kremlin, agreed to move to Belarus, there were no immediate winners in the extraordinary stand-off between Mr Putin and his one-time cook and fixer.

Although most Russians rely on the country’s state-controlled media for their news, some will surely wonder why Wagner fighters hailed as “heroes” for their role against Ukraine appeared to turn against the president, who accused them of treason. They may also realise that none of this chaos would be happening without Mr Putin’s intervention in Ukraine, however he dresses it up as necessary to defend Russia against malign forces in the West. Suddenly, the strong man looks weak, his iron grip on his country loosened.