No coup here - nothing to see

It’s been an eventful weekend, but it now seems that there won’t be a change in the Russian government. Maybe that’s as it should be. Maybe having the Wagner boss in charge of Russian policy is not the best news for Ukraine, or the rest of the world. But it’s still been fascinating to watch.

Putin is notorious for his control of the media, and of security forces. Given his determination to hang on the power, and neutralise or get rid of any opposition, it’s not astonishing that the country didn’t rise in protest. But many of them did welcome the Wagner troops to Rostov, and they seemed to make smooth progress on their way to Moscow, while that was part of the plan.

Meanwhile, Russia’s most successful general in Ukraine has publicly suggested that the whole operation has been a con, designed to promote the career of military leaders. All that stuff about Nazis was just camouflage. Putin has been on TV to insist that the rebels will be brutally punished - and has then agreed to let them all off, and allow their leader to retire peacefully to Belarus. None of this helps to support the notion of Putin as the canny genius who has everything under control. He may cling on to power, but right now he’s not in charge.