- The Kremlin is searching for traitors in the Russian military, a report said.
- It comes after the Wagner mercenary group launched a mutiny aimed at toppling military chiefs.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has launched a hunt for traitors in the wake of the Wagner Group's mutiny against military leaders, reports say.
According to Washington DC-based think tank The Institute for the Study of War (ISW), a well-sourced Russian military blogger claimed that "large-scale purges" had been launched of Russian military commanders and that the Russian Ministry of Defence is currently undergoing a "crash test" for loyalty.
Sources also told The Financial Times that Putin is seeking to re-establish his authority over the Russian military in the wake of the rebellion, and is freezing out suspected traitors or sympathizers to repair his "tough guy" reputation.
A source described as an acquaintance of Wagner leader Yevgeny Prigozhin, told the outlet that Russian security services "have started shaking down sympathizers and those who violated their oath."
Meanwhile, loyalists are being rewarded. The Financial Times said that Viktor Zolotov, a former bodyguard to the president, has received a promotion for his police force.
According to reports, Russian Army General Sergei Surovokin, formerly the commander of Russian forces in Ukraine, was arrested in the wake of the mutiny over allegations he supported it.
It came after US intelligence officials told the New York Times that Surovikin had advanced knowledge of Prigozhin's plot.
Surovikin in a video message Saturday denounced the rebellion, but both the Financial Times and the ISW report he may have been compelled to make the film because of his good relations with Prigozhin.
The Russian military responded poorly to last Saturday's rebellion, with Wagner fighters seizing control of parts of southern Russia and the city of Rostov-on-Don, where the military's Ukraine war command centre is based, before advancing on Moscow.
The rebellion was called off Saturday night after negotiations between Wagner leaders and the Kremlin resulted in Prigozhin going into exile in Belarus, and charges against Wagner fighters being dropped.
But according to the ISW, Putin will likely be keen to find scapegoats for the rebellion and assert his dominance, given its leader has evaded punishment.
"It's real tough guy stuff," a sanctioned figure in the Russian elite told the FT. "It's like when you go into the prison cell for the first time and punch the biggest guy you can find in the face to show nobody can mess with you."
The rebellion was launched after months of infighting between key figures behind Russia's Ukraine invasion.
Prigozhin had released a series of increasingly aggressive video messages from the front line accusing military leaders, including defense minister Sergei Shoigu, of botching the invasion and being part of a pampered elite.
Prigozhin claimed to have extensive backing for his mutiny among Russian military members, but wider backing for the rebellion did not materialize on Saturday.