Current and former Wagner mercenaries tell Lilia Yapparova what they think will happen to the Wagner Group now that its leader has been killed. The general consensus is that Prigozhin personally controlled most of Wagner Group’s activities and that without him, the private military company seems likely to crumble.

An autocratic regime is only stable as long as the elites are convinced that no one in their ranks will dare to oppose the leader. Until now the Russian elites have kept their heads low, although privately many members have negative feelings about the war and its consequences. Thanks to Prigozhin's mutiny Putin’s vulnerability has become public knowledge and public spectacle.