In Vladimir Putin’s system, power struggles or even just trials of strength are never carried out publicly. Wagner boss Prigoshin violated this iron law. Now the Kremlin is trying its best to pretend nothing happened.
No flag flew over the Kremlin, a sign that Vladimir Putin spent Monday elsewhere. It may be important to him to quickly restore some semblance of normalcy after this catastrophic weekend, and it’s normal for Putin to stay out of day-to-day business. A few phone calls were on the official calendar, with the Emir of Qatar, with the Iranian President, nothing special.