The Biden administration has warned that more turmoil is possible in Russia after a short-lived coup instigated by a mercenary group once loyal to Putin.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken made the prediction on Sunday in the first comments from a senior administration official on Russia’s future after a whirlwind 48 hours which left the leader of the Wagner Group exiled after his troops marched on Moscow.
"This is an unfolding story, and I think we're in the midst of a moving picture," Mr Blinken said on CBS show Face the Nation. "We haven't seen the last act. We're watching it very closely."
He went on to say that the rebellion showed “real cracks” in Russian President Vladimir Putin’s power structure, and raised “profound questions” about his ability to hold on to that power.
His comments came after the Kremlin announced that Wagner leader, Yevgeny Prigozhin, would accept a deal requiring him to leave Russia for Belarus in exchange for immunity for members of Wagner which has been on the front lines of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine for months.
In that time, Mr Prigozhin has been increasingly vocal about supposed failures in Russia’s command, and accused the nation’s generals of mismanaging the war.
A senior administration official noted as much to The Washington Post in a report which revealed that US intelligence agencies have known about the mercenary group’s impending attack for several weeks.
The secretary’s comments are in line with many commentators in the US and Europe who have predicted that Mr Putin’s control over Russia and his country’s military will continue to slip as further victories are won by Ukraine’s military against their invading foes.
“This is the biggest crisis of his time in power since [Putin] became president in 2000,” Michael McFaul, the former US ambassador to Russia, added on MSNBC in an interview with Jen Psaki.
Mr Prigozhin’s exile is at the very least a black eye for Mr Putin given that just a day ago the Russian leader was denouncing the advancing forces as traitors and vowing retribution; as it stands, none of those involved will see any consequences for their actions.
The secretary of State added in his interview Sunday that he expected the public would learn more in the coming days what concessions (if any) Mr Prigozhin was able to secure in his deal with the Russian president.
"We still don't have finality in terms of what was actually agreed between Prigozhin and Putin," he told CBS News. "I suspect that we're going to learn more in the days and weeks ahead about what deal they struck."
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