WASHINGTON (AP) 鈥 President Joe Biden declared Monday that the United States and NATO played no part in the Wagner mercenary group's short-lived insurrection in Russia, calling the uprising and the longer-term challenges it poses for President Vladimir Putin's authority 鈥渁 struggle within the Russian system.鈥
Biden and U.S. allies supporting Ukraine in its fight against Russia's invasion emphasized their intent to be seen as staying out of the mercenaries' stunning insurgency, the biggest threat to Putin in his two decades leading Russia. They are concerned that Putin could use accusations of Western involvement to rally Russians to his defense.
Biden and administration officials declined an immediate assessment of what the 22-hour uprising by the Wagner Group might mean for Russia's war in Ukraine, for or for Russia itself.
鈥淲e鈥檙e going to keep assessing the fallout of this weekend鈥檚 events and the implications from Russia and Ukraine,鈥 Biden said. 鈥淏ut it鈥檚 still too early to reach a definitive conclusion about where this is going.鈥
Putin, in his first public comments since the rebellion, said 鈥淩ussia鈥檚 enemies鈥 had hoped the mutiny would succeed in dividing and weakening Russia, 鈥渂ut they miscalculated.鈥 He identified the enemies as 鈥渢he neo-Nazis in Kyiv, their Western patrons and other national traitors.鈥
And Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said the special services were already investigating whether Western intelligence services were involved in Prigozhin鈥檚 rebellion.
Over the course of a tumultuous weekend in Russia, U.S. diplomats were in contact with their counterparts in Moscow to underscore that the American government regarded the matter as a domestic affair for Russia, with the U.S. only a bystander, State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said.
American diplomats also stressed to Moscow that they expected Russia to ensure the safety of the U.S. Embassy in Moscow and Americans detained in Russia, Miller said.
In a video call between Biden and leaders of U.S.-allied countries over the weekend, all were determined to give Putin 鈥渘o excuse to blame this on the West," Biden told reporters at the White House.
鈥淲e made clear that we were not involved. We had nothing to do with it,鈥 Biden said. 鈥淭his was part of a struggle within the Russian system.鈥
Michael McFaul, a former U.S. ambassador to Russia, said Putin in the past has alleged clandestine U.S. involvement in events 鈥 including democratic uprisings in former Soviet countries, and campaigns by democracy activists inside and outside Russia 鈥 as a way to diminish public support among Russians for those challenges to the Russian system.
The U.S. and NATO "don鈥檛 want to be blamed for the appearance of trying to destabilize Putin,鈥 McFaul said.
A feud between Prigozhin and Russia鈥檚 military brass that has festered throughout the war erupted into the mutiny that saw the mercenaries leave Ukraine to seize a military headquarters in a southern Russian city. They rolled for hundreds of kilometers toward Moscow, before turning around on Saturday, in a deal whose terms remain uncertain.
Biden's national security team briefed him hourly as Prigozhin's forces were on the move, the president said. He had directed them to 鈥減repare for a range of scenarios鈥 as Russia's crisis unfolded, he said.
Biden did not elaborate on the scenarios. But national security spokesman John Kirby addressed one concern raised frequently by the public, news media and others as the world watched the cracks opening in Putin's hold on power 鈥 worries that the Russian leader might take extreme action to reassert his command.
Putin and the Kremlin have made repeated references to Russia's nuclear weapons since invading Ukraine 16 months ago, aiming to discourage NATO countries from ratcheting up their support to Ukraine.
鈥淥ne thing that we have always talked about, unabashedly so, is that it鈥檚 in nobody鈥檚 interest for this war to escalate beyond the level of violence that is already visited upon the Ukrainian people,鈥 Kirby said at a White House news briefing. 鈥淚t鈥檚 not good for, certainly, Ukraine and not good for our allies and partners in Europe. Quite frankly, it鈥檚 not good for the Russian people.鈥
In the aftermath of the mutiny, both Prigozhin and Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu made Monday aiming to play down the crisis.
In an 11-minute audio statement, Prigozhin said he acted 鈥渢o prevent the destruction of the Wagner private military company鈥 and in particular in response to an attack on a Wagner camp that killed some 30 of his fighters.
Biden spoke with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy over the weekend, telling him, 鈥濃橬o matter what happened in Russia, let me say again, no matter what happened in Russia, we in the United States would continue to support Ukraine鈥檚 defense and sovereignty and its territorial integrity.鈥 Biden said. He said he intended to speak with Zelenskyy again late Monday or early Tuesday.
The Pentagon is expected to announce Tuesday that it is sending up to to Ukraine, including more than 50 heavily armored vehicles and an infusion of missiles for air defense systems, U.S. officials said Monday. They spoke on condition of anonymity because the aid has not yet been publicly announced.
Biden, in the first weeks after Putin sent tens of thousands of Russian forces into Ukraine in February 2022, had issued a passionate statement against the Russian leader's continuing in command. 鈥淔or God's sake, this man cannot remain in power,鈥 he said then, as reports emerged of Russian atrocities against civilians in Ukraine.
On Monday, U.S. officials were careful not to be seen as backing either Putin or his former longtime protege, Prigozhin, in public comments.
鈥淲e believe it's up to the Russian people to determine who their leadership is,鈥 Kirby said.
White House officials were also trying to understand how Beijing was digesting the Wagner revolt and what it might mean for the China-Russia relationship going forward. China and Russia are each other鈥檚 closest major partner. The White House says Beijing has considered 鈥 but not followed through on 鈥 sending Russia weaponry for use in Ukraine.
鈥淚 think it鈥檇 be fair to say that recent developments in Russia had been unsettling to the Chinese leadership,鈥 said Kurt Campbell, coordinator for the Indo-Pacific at the White House 好色tv Security Council, speaking at a forum hosted by the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington. 鈥淚 think I鈥檒l just leave it at that.鈥
China values Russia as a friend in part to keep from standing alone against the U.S. and its allies in disputes. With Russia's invasion and resulting international sanctions sapping Russian resources and now sparking a rebellion, McFaul said, Ukraine and its allies could make the case: "'Xi Jinping, you know, if you want your buddy to stay in power, maybe this is the time to put some pressure on him to wrap up this war.'''
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AP Diplomatic Writer Matthew Lee contributed to this report.
