How is it? One time hotdog salesman and former convict Yevgeny Pergo could lead an armed mutiny. The greatest threat to Vladimir Putin's nearly quarter century reign. His story is not over and Putin knows it. We haven't seen Putin as weak as he has been in the last 48 hours or so ever. Ian Garner has studied Russia for nearly the entirety of Putin's power and that changes his reputation within Russia greatly. Suddenly he is no longer the man watching on from above before Prasin was branded *** traitor. He was Putin's protege here in 2006, serving the president and the visiting George W Bush underworld connections led him from small food operations into ever larger and more lucrative catering contracts and deep political connections. But his profile ballooned with the Ukraine War. He moved into mercenary work running the Wagner private army. His force is brutal and more effective than the official Russian military. Many of his soldiers came from prisons, parole given to those who would fight 10,000 of them would die within months. All the while he would rail against the head of the army. Valerie Gerasimov and the minister of defense, Sergei Shoigu accusing them of incompetence in the Ukraine fight. He has characterized them as cowards and as sort of spoiled elites as sort of ineffective generals that don't really know what's going on on the battlefield. Francesca Elba is the Washington Post's Russia correspondent. Importantly, pro was always very careful not to insult or involve President Putin that he got away with it tells you he was protected by Putin. That is until Friday, Russia's spy service accusing Prego of armed rebellion. He responded by occupying *** key Russian city demanding the defense minister and army chief surrender. This was now mutiny. Vladimir Putin saw it as treason no more. Would the mentor tolerate the student? But per Gozin was defiant. Going on social media to write, we will have *** new president arguing the Ukraine fight was unnecessary and Russians were being deceived by propaganda that definitely is significant. It kind of shows that they, you know, certainly at *** very senior or influential level, people know that this is, these are all lies pra goins head just swelled and he sort of forgot who he really was. Kimberly Martin studies Russia that he's not Putin's good friends that he has always been in *** service role. And I think he just maybe got some delusions of strength of how far he could push things in his fight with the Defense Ministry, *** tanks and troops sped towards Moscow, the regular Russian Army's efforts to slow them stumbled. The invincibility of Putin challenged Rhodes hurriedly ripped up to stop Wagner's advance. The best way to carry out *** military is quickly and hoping that units of the regular army will rapidly either stand aside completely or will actually actively join your cause. And what was interesting in Russia was the near complete silence for many of the elite soldiers would deploy across Moscow Pergo had momentum but he did not have wider support. The military stood against him. Obey the president. One of Russia's top generals commanded in *** middle of the night video, not long after Perin turned his troops around. Just what deal he made to do. So is not clear but he appears set to go to Belarus though maybe not for long. Can I see Putin allowing him to live comfortably in Belarus for the next few years? Absolutely not. He seems too dangerous, too unpredictable. We know what happens to opponents of the Russian government abroad. They find themselves falling out of windows. They find that they have unfortunately poisoned sushi that they would drink the wrong cup of tea or they're poisoned with Novik may move instead to Africa where his Wagner group is active fighting wars for regimes and rebels in return for hundreds of millions of dollars. Putin himself is not strengthened by this ordeal. His image of stability and strength shattered. There were reports he fled when it looked like Moscow might be attacked. So whatever actually happened, Putin allowed himself to look weak and I think everybody is predicting that this means that Putin will face further challenges in the future. Meanwhile, drones likely Ukrainian have been striking. The Kremlin and wealthy areas of Moscow. The Russian president billed the Ukraine invasion as necessary to ensure Russian security in its wake. The opposite appears to be true. David Persian's convoy never made it to Moscow but the Kremlin seemed to be prepared for *** fight. Uh, absolutely Ian, but so was Pergo coming with *** lot of soldiers and advanced weaponry, tanks among them heading towards Moscow. And on the way there, Russians killed other Russians. I cannot underscore that enough that aircraft were shot down, helicopters were shot down, bombings took place. You know, when I look at the possibilities here, let us just consider that most coups do not succeed, but they can cause *** lot of damage in the process. We don't yet know how much damage was caused here and we may not have seen the full extent of it yet. David Common in our Toronto studio.