Putin 'Has No One to Blame But Himself' on Wagner: Former Defense Secretary

Russian President Vladimir Putin only has himself to blame after facing a direct military challenge from Wagner Group leader Yevgeny Prigozhin over the weekend, according to former U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta.

Prigozhin led his private mercenaries in an attempted rebellion against the Kremlin for less than 24 hours before a deal was brokered to avoid Russian bloodshed. In exchange for turning his troops away from Moscow, Prigozhin agreed to leave the country for Belarus and said Monday that the armed coup was a protest of the Russian Ministry of Defense's forced deal to have his troops sign contracts with the government by July 1.

Putin also addressed his nation on Monday, delivering his first public statements since calling Prigozhin's actions "treasonous" over the weekend. The Russian leader has kept a relatively low profile during the turmoil, however, as some experts argue that the recent conflict may pose a threat to Putin's political stability.

"Any time there's chaos and instability, any leader faces problems as a result of that," said Panetta, who spoke with CNN's Alex Marquardt Monday evening. "But particularly an autocrat like Putin, who...his basic claim to power is that he controls what's going on in Russia. And what happened indicates that his control was not there."

Panetta added during his conversation with Marquardt that Putin is "paying the price for something he created" after facing a direct challenge from Prigozhin, who previously shared a close relationship and support system with the Russian president.

"I think the bottom line here, Alex, is that Putin is the one who's paying a price for something he created," Panetta said. "He's the one who put together the Wagner group...He's deployed them to Asia, to Africa, to Ukraine, where they've committed all kinds of atrocities. And then, when Prigozhin started speaking out and criticizing both Putin as well as the Russian military, Putin took no steps really to discipline Prigozhin.

"So likely the bottom line here is Putin has no one to blame but himself for what occurred in Russia," he added.

Wagner forces have become a key part of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, particularly in the months-long fight for the eastern city of Bakhmut. But Prigozhin has become repeatedly more vocal about his criticism of the Russian military's performance in Ukraine, particularly attacking Minister of Defense Sergei Shoigu and Chief of Russia's General Staff Valery Gerasimov.

Prigozhin himself has been nicknamed "Putin's chef" and faced little condemnation from Russia's president for his repeated attacks against Kremlin leadership.

The Wagner leader reportedly remains under investigation for his attempted rebellion despite leaving Russia, and it's unclear what lies ahead for the Wagner Group's troops.

Newsweek reached out to the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs via email for comment.