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Putin vs. Prigozhin: The Post-Coup Report

In the wake of Prigozhin’s attempted coup, there’s been a lot of full-throated certainty in the Western media that Putin has been mortally wounded and that his regime is weaker than ever. Look as I might, I just don’t see it.

After a deafening 48-hour silence, Putin can’t seem to stop speaking.
After a deafening 48-hour silence, Putin can’t seem to stop speaking. Photo: Contributor/Getty Images
Julia Ioffe
June 27, 2023

As Evgeny Prigozhin’s armored convoy of some 25,000 battle-hardened, heavily-armed men made their way to Moscow on their “March of Fairness,” people in the capital were mostly going about their regular lives. The museums were crowded, as were the cafés. People celebrated their weddings. Underneath, of course, was panic. Cash withdrawals, by the Kremlin’s own account, jumped 30 percent. Some people with means, anticipating chaos and bloodshed, tried to get on a plane out of the country—or into a car to get out of the city to the relative safety of their dachas.