Who knew about Prigozhin’s Wagner Rebellion before it happened?

As details emerge of last weekend’s aborted uprising in Russia led by Yevgeny V. Prigozhin, it is becoming clear that some Russian officials and foreign intelligence agencies knew about it in advance.

President Vladimir V. Putin is on his way to exercising his authority after Mr. Prigozhin, a wealthy tycoon and one-time ally, abruptly quashed the uprising on Saturday and was offered exile in Belarus. This week, the Russian leader warned of potential consequences for officials affiliated with Mr Prigozhin and his Wagner mercenary group, saying that “we will certainly get to the bottom of this”.

Mr Putin has not publicly commented on whether he had prior knowledge of Mr Prigozhin’s uprising, which he has described as treacherous. But here are some of those who knew.

General Sergei Surovikin

The New York Times reported Tuesday that General Surovikin, the former top Russian commander in Ukraine, had prior knowledge of Mr Prigozhin’s plans, raising questions about the support the mercenary leader had within the top Russian military.

US officials said they were still trying to find out if the general had any plans to help Mr Prigozhin’s uprising last weekend. If General Surovikin were involved, it would be the latest sign of the power struggle that has characterized Russia’s military leadership since the beginning of Putin’s war in Ukraine. The US officials said Mr Putin would have to decide whether he believed General Surovikin was helping Mr Prigozhin, which would determine how he would respond.

On Wednesday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitri S. Peskov described The Times report as “speculation” and “gossip”, but he did not deny it or express confidence in the general.

General Viktor V. Zolotov

General Zolotov, the head of the Russian National Guard and former Putin’s bodyguard, said Tuesday that leaked from Mr. Prigozhin’s camp last week “about the fact that an uprising is being prepared and will take place in the period from the 22nd to the 25th,” Russian state media reported.

While General Zolotov did not say whether he notified Putin, he told reporters that he was “in constant contact with the president” during the uprising and that his troops were ready to “fight to the death” to defend Moscow. And he seemed to benefit from the events of the weekend – saying he had spoken with Putin about the need to supply his military-separate force with “tanks and long-range heavy weapons”.

US intelligence agencies

Last Wednesday, US intelligence officials told senior military and government officials that Mr. Prigozhin was preparing to take military action against senior Russian defense officials, The New York Times reported. US intelligence agencies had clues days earlier that Mr Prigozhin was up to something, according to officials familiar with the matter.

Intelligence agencies were silent on Mr Prigozhin’s plans, the officials told The Times, believing that if they say anything publicly, Mr Putin could accuse them of orchestrating a coup. And they clearly had little interest in helping Putin avoid a major, embarrassing break in his support.