JRL NEWSWATCH: “Putin, Prigozhin, and Russia’s Future; Caution should be our guiding principle” – The Nation/ Katrina vanden Heuvel
“… Prigozhin lambasted the elite’s children as ‘shaking their tails on beaches’ while the children of ordinary Russian families are dying. … His fury both stokes and is fueled by widespread anger … [Russian] towns have been emptied by conscription[] and … cemeteries seek more gravediggers. … It would be reckless to dismiss the possibility that the regime’s internal troubles may be deeper than they appear. … [I]t is … possible … Putin still faces serious internal turmoil. He has long suppressed alternatives to his reign …. [M]any here and in the West would welcome such a development. But we should also be aware of the severe risks and danger that would come from the Russian state’s disintegration. … the terrifying possibility of Russian loss of control of its nuclear weapons …. the humanitarian catastrophe of a new refugee crisis …. [and] a real possibility … of new waves of repression: shutting down Internet access, … more censorship, adding new groups to foreign enemies’ list. Even if Putin prevails … against Wagner, he is … weakened …. It would be a grave mistake, however, to try to turn Russia’s distraction to immediate advantage. Instead, the fact that Russia is weakened in its military effort in Ukraine offers a rare and dramatic opportunity when smart and tough diplomacy could engage and positively advance two major issues: command and control over nuclear weapons and the humane resolution of a war.”