What's after happening in Russia overnight?

[Moonandstarzz]

In simple terms please!

Dunno, but came here looking for more details.

so looks like Wagner who was previously some form of pyscho mate of Putin helping him against Russia has now turned on Putin and has said he will March on Moscow. What I want to know is how likely he is to succeed.

Sorry, the guys name is Progozhin not Wagner..but they call them Wagner forces.

Really? I haven’t looked at the news. I’m off to read up.

Apparently the Wagner forces are brutal.

Some ex ambassador to the Ukraine reckons they’re unlikely to succeed but the infighting as such will help Ukraine as Russia will probably have to pull some forces back to Russia. Plus I guess being invaded on their own soil is more likely to help turn more Russian people against Putin?

Frank Gardner is insinuating that the world doesn’t really want the Wagner forces winning and then having control of nuclear warheads.

Wiki says the Wagner group is officially a private military group but unofficially it’s a unit of the Russian military intelligence agency. It receives funding an equipment from the Russian ministry of defence .

The group can commit war crimes, etc and Russia can deny any responsibility

Prigozhin a former close ally of Putin has accused Putin of attacking his troops.

Prigozhin is absolutely brutal and his Wagner mercenaries have a penchant for rape and murder, having committed some of the worst atrocities in Ukraine. He certainly isn’t someone you want anywhere near the Kremlin or nuclear weapons. Any coup attempt though is unlikely to succeed simply due to the size and continuing power of Putin domestically.

Putin to give an address imminently, interested to hear what he has to say.

I'd agree with Frank Gardner (and @Igotjelly )

You might find some questions answered on the latest of the long running Ukraine war threads here:

https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/_chat/4821703-ukraine-invasion-part-41?page=6&reply=126727680

He looks scarier than Putin!

Interesting how this guy has escaped Navalnys fate.. Wonder what Navalny is making of this!
I watched Navalny recently, he was treated so badly but in reality I don't know if he would be much different to Putin..

Navalny and Prigozhin are at totally different ends of the spectrum. Prigozhin had escaped that fate because until now he’s been Putin’s ally, even his chef for some time. Navalny believes in democracy for Russia (granted he has some questionable views on Crimea) and is a genuine opposition figure.

@Igotjelly I hadn't heard about this Prigozhin guy until this morning..

Don't know.

But ds told me the other day some Russian soldiers had defected to Ukraine and they'd marched Russian borders.

Sounds like it could actually be plausible.

I heard on R4 news that Wagner army are going to March Moscow and so Putins army have sent out forces to protect it.

I imagine the same is probably true for lots of people. He’s been a very shadowy figure, for years denying he owned the Wagner PMC however that changed since the invasion of Ukraine.

Wagner have long been active in parts of Africa and are well known for their brutality.

@Igotjelly so these are definitely not the group the Russians will want succeeding Putin by the sounds of it!

Wondering if this is some kind of fake coup like the one in Turkey, which bolstered support for the incumbent leader as they were able to illustrate their power, by swiftly crushing said "coup"

Russians are turning against Russia?

What does that mean for Ukraine then? Will they help them?

What a bloody mess. Literally. This has gone on for way too long 🥺

Wagner, who are even worse than Putin, appear to be staging a coup.

This is a very concerning and potentially volatile situation.

They are mercenaries recruited from the criminal class. For example, if a Russian soldier is let go for criminal offences such as stealing/assault/murder etc., there is another employment opportunity within Wagner. The leaders, while elite and highly skilled, are also criminals.

Having a strong, brutal mercenary army like this would be a useful tactic for Putin, particularly in the first few months of conflict. But as a dog can unexpectedly become vicious and turn on you, this type of soldier would need to see a tangible return for their effort to avoid turning on Russia. Unfortunately, the criminal mercenaries have had enough and are marching towards Moscow.

They won't help Ukraine. Wagner still want to see Ukraine crushed.

They have reportedly reached Vorozneh, halfway between Rostov-on-Don (already occupied) and Moscow.

Why have they had enough do people think?

eg is it this war is too slow, shouldn’t be happening, other or just a power grab at a supposed opportune time?

@SunnyEgg

Why have they had enough do people think?

eg is it this war is too slow, shouldn’t be happening, other or just a power grab at a supposed opportune time?

A few reasons, possibly. They are reportedly paid well (by Russia), but they don't have an opportunity to spend that money. They've been fighting a long time. Also, Prigozhin has said that Russian state media has been lying about the amount of Russian casualties (amongst other things) and that it is 10x higher than stated.