Adam Tooze: How Putin Overstretched His Military in Ukraine
Last weekend’s mutiny was partly the product of a mismanaged authoritarian state.
Yevgeny Prigozhin, founder and leader of the private military organization Wagner Group, said he had 25,000 soldiers under his command last weekend as he mounted a mutiny against Russian President Vladimir Putin. That compares with up to 1.15 million active-duty personnel estimated to be in the Russian military. And yet that disparity in size didn’t stop Prigozhin and Wagner from organizing a march on Moscow that started in the southern Russian city of Rostov-on-Don and nearly made it to the doorstep of the capital. Fears that the Putin regime could collapse were exaggerated in retrospect—but the events were an indication of how the state might eventually come apart.
Cameron Abadi is a deputy editor at Foreign Policy. Twitter: @CameronAbadi
Read More
Adam Tooze: Why the Economic Gap Between the U.S. and Europe Is Growing
America is using its political and commercial might to stay ahead of Europe.
BRICS Invitation Puts Argentina in a Tough Spot
Ahead of a presidential election, debate in Buenos Aires reveals the mounting challenges of multi-alignment.
Zelensky: ‘War Crimes Must Be Punished’
Ukraine’s president made an impassioned plea at the opening of the U.N. General Assembly to bring wrongdoers—such as Russia—to justice.
More from Foreign Policy
A New Multilateralism
How the United States can rejuvenate the global institutions it created.
America Prepares for a Pacific War With China It Doesn’t Want
Embedded with U.S. forces in the Pacific, I saw the dilemmas of deterrence firsthand.
The Endless Frustration of Chinese Diplomacy
Beijing’s representatives are always scared they could be the next to vanish.
The End of America’s Middle East
The region’s four major countries have all forfeited Washington’s trust.
Sign up for World Brief
FP’s flagship evening newsletter guiding you through the most important world stories of the day. Delivered weekdays.
By submitting your email, you agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use and to receive email correspondence from us. You may opt out at any time.
Join the Conversation
Commenting on this and other recent articles is just one benefit of a Foreign Policy subscription.
Already a subscriber? .
Subscribe Subscribe
View Comments
Join the Conversation
Join the conversation on this and other recent Foreign Policy articles when you subscribe now.
Subscribe Subscribe
Not your account?
View Comments
Join the Conversation
Please follow our comment guidelines, stay on topic, and be civil, courteous, and respectful of others’ beliefs.