UNDER PRESSURE from Ukraine’s counter-offensive, the long-running feud among Russia’s warlords has burst spectacularly into the open, amid accusations of internecine attacks, betrayal and insurrection. Armoured vehicles deployed to the streets of Moscow during the night on June 23rd. Uncertain-looking generals issued videos pleading with fighters of the shadowy Wagner mercenary group to remain loyal. Events remain murky but questions are inevitably being raised about the stability of Vladimir Putin’s regime.

The rivalry between Yevgeny Prigozhin, Wagner’s head, and the military command has been apparent for months. Mr Prigozhin has developed a cult following thanks to his video rants against the corruption and incompetence of the high command (but not directly of Mr Putin himself). His forces, packed with ex-convicts promised future pardons, have often proved to be better fighters than regular Russian units. Mr Prigozhin has variously accused the likes of Sergei Shoigu, the defence minister, and Valery Gerasimov, the army chief of staff, of cowardice and deliberately starving Wagner of weapons and munitions.

But his video posts on June 23rd were remarkable even by his spittle-flecked standards. One questioned the basis of Mr Putin’s “special military operation”, as Russia describes the invasion launched last year. Mr Prigozhin said there had been no real threat from Ukraine. Instead, Russian leaders—but not Mr Putin himself—had led the country to war for reasons of corruption and vainglory.

He also asserted that Ukrainian forces were on the advance, contradicting the Kremlin’s claims to have repelled the onslaught. “What they’re telling us is a total fraud.”

Then his rants took an ominous turn when he stated that thousands of Wagner fighters had been killed by a missile strike launched—not by Ukraine at the front, but “from the rear”, by Russian army units. Vowing that Wagner would “respond to this evildoing”, he announced a “march of justice” against Russia’s army, but was careful to say it was not a “coup”. He singled out Mr Shoigu, claiming he had ordered the alleged air strike on Wagner and then “ran away like a bitch to avoid explaining why he sent helicopters to destroy our boys”.

In another video, he declared: “The evil brought by the country’s military leadership must be stopped.” And without saying what precisely he would do, he added: “I ask that nobody resist. We will consider everyone who resists to be a threat and destroy them at once.”

As ever, there is much uncertainty about the games that Mr Prigozhin plays with power-brokers in the Kremlin and elsewhere, and why Mr Putin has given him such leeway to criticise his campaign when even those who call it a “war” are jailed. But Mr Prigozhin appears genuinely to have unnerved the top brass in the army and security services.

The defence ministry denied Mr Prigozhin’s accusations, calling them “informational provocation”. The FSB, Russia’s main security service, later announced it would prosecute Mr Prigozhin “over calls for an armed uprising”. It told Wagner fighters “not to make an irreparable mistake, to stop using any force against the Russian people, not to carry out Prigozhin’s criminal and treacherous orders, and to take steps to detain him”.

The seriousness of the feud was all the more apparent when senior Wagner-friendly generals took to issuing their own videos late at night. General Sergey Surovikin, deputy commander of Russia’s Ukraine campaign (at one point its overall head), sat with an assault rifle on his knee as he pleaded with Wagner units: “I urge you to stop. The enemy is waiting precisely for the political situation in our country to worsen.” Calling on them to follow Mr Putin’s orders, he added: “Stop the columns, return to your places of permanent deployment.”

As security forces, including armoured vehicles, were seen in various Russian cities, Tass, the state news agency, explained: “Security measures have been strengthened in Moscow, all the most important facilities, state authorities and transport infrastructure facilities have been taken under increased protection.”

Dmitry Peskov, Mr Putin’s spokesman, said the Russian leader was aware of Mr Prigozhin’s comments and that “all the necessary measures were being taken”. Little has been seen of Mr Putin himself. At one point during the war of videos, the Kremlin issued a pre-recorded film of Mr Putin congratulating school-leavers, saying: “Believe in yourself, dream bravely, achieve your goals, and you will definitely be successful!”

Despite the regime’s apparent nervousness—with reports that authorities were hampering access to foreign news websites—there was no clear evidence that Wagner fighters were in fact on the move.

On the front in Ukraine, meanwhile, Russia claims Ukrainian troops were concentrating for an attack near Bakhmut, the site of much bloody fighting involving Wagner, “taking advantage of Prigozhin’s provocation”. Ukraine’s counter-offensive has been making slower progress than many had hoped in penetrating the layers of Russian defences. But Ukrainian commanders say they are still probing for weaknesses, and the bulk of their forces had not yet been committed to battle. But it seems they are already putting enough pressure on Russian forces to sow chaos among their military commanders.

Winston Churchill once compared Russian leaders to “bulldogs fighting under a carpet”. But more than a year after Mr Putin launched his reckless invasion of Ukraine, they seem to be tearing at each other in the open. ■