Ret. Gen. David Petraeus: 'Prigozhin Lost His Nerve' in Coup

The mercenary uprising by Yevgeny Prigozhin and his Wagner Group might have "shaken" Russia's Vladimir Putin, but Prigozhin "lost his nerve" on a coup because it lacked "support," according to retired Army Gen. David Petraeus.

"Clearly, Prigozhin lost his nerve," Petraeus told CNN's "State of the Union."

"He was," the former CIA director continued, "within roughly two hours drive of the outskirts of Moscow, where they were starting to prepare defensive positions.

"This rebellion, although it had some applause along the way, didn't appear to be generating the kind of support that he had hoped it would."

But the message was sent and received and Putin apparently had to call in Belarus' Aleksandr Lukashenko, according to Petraeus.

"I think clearly Putin is weakened," he told host Dana Bash. "His government is weakened.

"The irony is that his junior partner in Belarus, Lukashenko, had to bail him out of this."

Prigozhin testing Russia and Putin's resolve makes his future in Belarusian exile shaky, too, Petraeus said.

"Prigozhin kept his life, but lost his Wagner Group, and he should be very careful around open windows in his new surroundings in Belarus, where he's going," he added.

"And, again, he decided to take the deal. He gave up this effort, so a stunning series of developments. In the meantime, Putin fled Moscow, reportedly, didn't stay around."

Russian Defense Chiefs Valery Gerasimov and Sergei Shoigu apparently remain, while Prigozhin was exiled, notable developments, according to Petraeus.

"We haven't seen anything of Putin's minister of defense or chief of the general staff, Shoigu and Gerasimov," Petraeus said.

"So, again, clearly, I think the government has been shaken. Putin has been shaken personally. This makes him more vulnerable, arguably, than he has at any time in his two-decade rule of the Russian Federation. Who knows where this could go now."

The question remains who around Putin might ultimately break his hold.

"We have always asked, who would be the one who would strike a blow at the czar?" Petraeus concluded. "And now we know, although he failed. And it brings to mind also Napoleon's admonition, if you start to take Vienna, take Vienna.

"Prigozhin lost his nerve, turned around, and also the future of the Wagner Group not completely clear, how many of them will sign a contract with the Ministry of Defense, which was the real bone of contention to begin with, that Prigozhin would lose control of this mercenary force he's built over a number of years."

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