FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
June 24, 2023
Contact: press@defensepriorities.org
WASHINGTON, DC—Wagner forces led by Russian mercenary boss Yevgeny Prigozhin have reportedly taken Rostov, the headquarters of Russia's Southern Military District, and moved north toward Moscow. Defense Priorities Director of Grand Strategy Rajan Menon issued the following statement in response:
“Few would have predicted that what began as a quarrel over the conduct of the war in Ukraine between Wagner Group boss Yevgeny Prigozhin on the one hand and the Russian Defense Minister and Chairman of the General Staff on the other would morph into what Vladimir Putin himself has characterized as a rebellion against the Russian state, one he has compared to the 1917 revolution that overthrew the Tsar.
“Putin expected quick success when he invaded Ukraine. In the event, a protracted war against a much weaker adversary has now produced political turmoil within Russia and the biggest challenge he has ever faced. No matter how this crisis ends, his aura of invincibility has dissipated.
“Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has proved that the Russian army, contrary to the assessments of experts within and outside the American government, suffers from significant weakness and lacks the wherewithal to attack Europe. The correct lesson to be drawn, therefore, is that Europe, which has far greater economic and technological resources than Russia, is fully capable of defending itself and that there is no compelling reason for it to continue its longstanding reliance on American protection against Russia. The time has come to move, in a considered manner, beyond the standard calls for ‘burden sharing’ to burden shifting.”
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