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Former prime minister Liz Truss has called on the government to have a plan in place in case the Russian government under Vladimir Putin collapses.

It came as Foreign Secretary James Cleverly described the mutiny over the weekend as an “unprecedented challenge to President Putin’s authority”.

Speaking in the House of Commons, Ms Truss said: “We, and our allies – including the Ukrainians, including the Poles, including the Baltic states – need to make sure that we have a plan in the case of the implosion of Russia.”

Russia-Ukraine latest: Prigozhin claims he wasn’t trying to overthrow Putin

While he did not respond to Ms Truss’s point initially, Mr Cleverly later said that “the leadership of Russia is for the Russian people”.

“We do not speculate or attempt to predict – what we do is plan and put in place contingency arrangements,” he added.

“And so therefore, whatever the outcome of this conflict is, we shall be prepared.”

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‘Unprecedented challenge to Putin’s authority’

Mr Cleverly also said that “Prigozhin’s rebellion is an unprecedented challenge to President Putin’s authority – and it is clear that cracks are emerging in the Russian support for the war”.

The mutiny started on Friday evening, when the leader of the Wagner Group mercenaries, Yevgeny Prigozhin, called for an uprising against Russia’s military leadership.

Wagner troops reportedly advanced north to 120 miles (200km) from Moscow when their convoy turned back
Image:
Wagner troops had reportedly advanced north to 120 miles of Moscow

Prigozhin and Wagner have been a notable part of the forces fighting on the Russian side of the invasion of Ukraine.

The mercenary forces began marching towards Moscow, taking the cities of Rostov-on-Don and Voronezh before stopping around 120 miles (193km) south of the capital on Saturday afternoon when the turmoil de-escalated.

Prigozhin is now set to be based in Belarus following negotiations with Putin, mediated through Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko.

UK Defence Secretary Ben Wallace echoed Mr Cleverly regarding the “internal” nature of the unrest in Russia.

Read more:
Prigozhin breaks silence in new audio message
What happens to Prigozhin and his private army next
Analysis: Putin risks looking weak if he replaces defence minister

Prigozhin ‘truth bomb’ over reason for war jumped on by UK government


Deborah Hayes

Deborah Haynes

Security and Defence Editor

@haynesdeborah

The UK moved quickly to take advantage of Vladimir Putin’s moment of peril.

James Cleverly, the foreign secretary, called the rebellion by mercenary boss Yevgeny Prigozhin an “unprecedented challenge” to the president’s authority.

“It’s clear that cracks are emerging in the Russian support for the war,” he said in a statement to parliament.

Mr Cleverly in particular highlighted how the Wagner chief – a man brought to prominence by the president – busted the myth of Moscow’s entire justification for the invasion of Ukraine.

Defence Secretary Ben Wallace also seized on Prigozhin’s truth bomb, which saw the Wagner chief take to social media to tell his followers that the situation in Ukraine before 24 January 2022 had been stable – not an existential threat.

His move was a direct challenge to the authority of Putin, who has always maintained he had no choice but to launch his “special military operation” to “de-Nazify” and “demilitarise” his neighbour for the safety of Russia.

Mr Wallace said the key impact that Prigozhin had made was “exposing the false Russian narrative for war”.

He said: “It was just another example of the cracks we have been seeing in public discourse where an anger amongst generals – I mean, I can’t remember how many generals have been fired or replaced by Russia and Russian leadership.

“If you remember early on, I think not a single one of the original sector or army commanders who started the invasion are still in place.

“I think they were all fired over this period.

“And then, of course, any army who suffers nearly 300,000 dead, or casualties, or desertions, cannot expect to get away with reputational damage and indeed friction among its leadership about why and how who’s telling the truth, who’s not.

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“And you know, Prigozhin just articulated that as a free agent.”

US President Joe Biden spoke shortly afterwards, and said it was important leaders gave Putin “no excuse” to blame the mutiny on the West, or on NATO.

“We made it clear we were not involved,” the president said. “We had nothing to do with it.

“This was part of a struggle within the Russian system.”

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‘I’m not so careful with what I say’ – is Trump feeling more invincible than ever?

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'I'm not so careful with what I say' - is Trump feeling more invincible than ever?

It was one sentence among the many words Donald Trump spoke this week that caught my attention.

Midway through a jaw-dropping news conference where he sensationally claimed to have “found an answer on autism”, he said: “Bobby (Kennedy) wants to be very careful with what he says, but I’m not so careful with what I say.”

The US president has gone from pushing the envelope to completely unfiltered.

Last Sunday, moments after Charlie Kirk‘s widow Erika had publicly forgiven her husband’s killer, Mr Trump told the congregation at his memorial service that he “hates his opponents”.

President Donald Trump embraces Charlie Kirk's widow Erika. Pic: AP
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President Donald Trump embraces Charlie Kirk’s widow Erika. Pic: AP

Twenty-four hours later, he drew fierce rebuke from medical experts by linking the use of Tylenol (paracetamol) during pregnancy to increased risk of autism.

The president treats professional disapproval not as a liability but as evidence of authenticity, fuelling the aura that he is a challenger of conventions.

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‘Paracetamol use in pregnancy perfectly safe’

On Tuesday, he went to the United Nations, where his frustrations over a stalled escalator and teleprompter failure were the prelude to the most combative address.

More on Donald Trump

“I’m really good at this stuff. Your countries are going to hell,” he told his audience, deriding Europe’s approach to immigration as a “failed experiment of open borders”.

Mr Trump addresses the UN General Assembly in New York. Pic: Reuters
Image:
Mr Trump addresses the UN General Assembly in New York. Pic: Reuters

Then came a U-turn on Ukraine, suggesting the country could win back all the land it has lost to Russia.

Most politicians would be punished for inconsistency, but Mr Trump recasts this as strategic genius – framing himself as dictating the terms.

It is hard to keep track when his expressed hopes for peace in Ukraine and Gaza are peppered with social media posts condemning the return of Jimmy Kimmel to late-night television.

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Trump’s major shift in Ukraine policy

Perhaps most striking of all is his reaction to the indictment of James Comey, the FBI director he fired during his first term.

In theory, this should raise questions about the president’s past conflicts with law enforcement, but he frames it as vindication, proof that his enemies fall while he survives.

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Ex-FBI chief: ‘Costs to standing up to Trump’

Mr Trump has spent much of his political career cultivating an image of a man above the normal consequences of politics, law or diplomacy, but he appears to feel more invincible than ever.

Read more from Sky News:
Musk and Prince Andrew named in latest Epstein files
Trump: ‘Looks like we have a deal’ to end war in Gaza

From funerals to world summits, world peace to public health, he projects the same image: rules are for others.

It is the politics of the untouchable.

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Russia launches massive attack on Kyiv – as Poland scrambles jets and closes airspace

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Russia launches massive attack on Kyiv - as Poland scrambles jets and closes airspace

Russia has launched a massive drone attack on Ukraine’s capital this morning, injuring at least six people, Kyiv’s military administration has said.

Poland closed the airspace near two of its southeastern cities, Lublin and Rzeszow, as its air force scrambled jets in response to Russia’s attack on Kyiv.

Drones flew over Kyiv and anti-aircraft fire rang out through the night in what independent monitors said was one of the biggest strikes on the city since the Ukraine war began in February 2022.

The attack started at around 6am local time and many regions across the country are under air raid alert.

Some residents have fled to metro stations deep underground for safety as the attack continues.

Poland said it had closed its airspace near the two cities until at least 4am GMT due to “unplanned military activity related to ensuring state security”, flight tracking service Flightradar24 said.

“In connection with the activity of the Russian Federation’s long-range aviation carrying out strikes on the territory of
Ukraine, Polish and allied aircraft have begun operating in our airspace,” the military said in a post on X.

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It described the actions as preventive and aimed at securing airspace and protecting citizens.

It comes as Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov was expected to address allegations made against Moscow that it has violated the airspace of several of its neighbours in recent weeks, as he spoke in New York at the 80th UN General Assembly.

A NATO air defence mission was recently carried out over Poland in response to “unprecedented” Russian drone incursions above the country.

During his address, Mr Lavrov, who has been Russia’s foreign minister for 21 years, says his country had no intention of attacking any NATO or EU member state but warned of a “decisive response” if any “aggression” was directed towards Moscow.

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Sergei Lavrov warns NATO and EU countries over ‘aggression’ towards Russia

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Sergei Lavrov warns NATO and EU countries over 'aggression' towards Russia

Vladimir Putin’s top diplomat says Russia has no intention of attacking any NATO or EU member state but warned of a “decisive response” if any “aggression” was directed towards Moscow.

Sergei Lavrov, Russia‘s foreign minister of 21 years, was speaking in New York at the 80th UN General Assembly, where he said threats against his country by Western nations were becoming “increasingly common”.

He was expected to address allegations made against Moscow that it has violated the airspace of several of its neighbours in recent weeks, heightening tensions across Europe.

Estonia said Russian fighter jets flew into its airspace last week and remained there for 12 minutes, while a NATO air defence mission was recently carried out over Poland in response to “unprecedented” Russian drone incursions above the country.

Romania and Latvia also reported that single Russian drones had violated their airspace this month.

“Threats of force against Russia, accused of practically planning an attack on the North Atlantic Alliance and the European Union, are becoming increasingly common,” Mr Lavrov said in New York.

More on Nato

“President Putin has repeatedly debunked such provocations. Russia has never had and does not have such intentions, but any aggression against my country will be met with a decisive response.”

At the start of the week, US President Donald Trump told the UN that NATO nations should shoot down Russian planes in their airspace.

‘They will regret it’

After his UN address, Mr Lavrov held a news conference, where he insisted again that Moscow “has nothing to hide” over the allegations against it.

He was then asked by US correspondent Mark Stone what the Kremlin’s response would be if a nation shot down a Russian drone or plane in Russian airspace.

“Try to understand that a drone, when it is flying not over our territory, but if it crosses someone’s border but has left our airspace, probably everyone has the right to do with that drone whatever they consider necessary to ensure their security.

“But if there are attempts to shoot down any flying object, or indeed any object at all, on our territory, in our airspace, then I think people will seriously regret it, undertaking such a gross violation of our territorial integrity, our sovereignty.”

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Watch: Sergei Lavrov answers Sky News question in New York

‘Hypocrisy’ over Gaza comments

At the start of his UN speech, Mr Lavrov took time to criticise Israel’s actions in the Middle East, accusing it of trying to “blow up” the region and saying it had “no justification” for the “brutal killings” of Palestinians in Gaza.

“The illegal use of force against the Palestinians and aggressive actions against Iran, Qatar, Yemen, Lebanon, Syria and Iraq today threaten to blow up the entire Middle East.”

He also hit out at Israeli plans to annex the West Bank: “There is no justification for plans to annex the West Bank. This is essentially a coup d’etat in diplomatic terms.”

Israel has repeatedly claimed that it does not target civilians in Gaza and says its military actions across the Middle East are strategically vital for its self-defence.

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Mark Stone reflects on Sergei Lavrov’s UN address

Mark Stone said Mr Lavrov’s comments on Israel’s actions will be seen as highly hypocritical given Russia’s war in Ukraine which began in February 2022.

“Lavrov said Israel is bombing schools, it is bombing hospitals in Gaza,” Stone said.

“Well, remember Mariupol and the rest of those cities in Ukraine, where Russia has and continues to do just the same thing? There’s a certain hypocrisy there, for sure.”

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