Russian President Vladimir Putin called the organizers of an attempted mutiny criminals and said his military would have crushed the uprising anyway. Putin's comments were his first since mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin led the private militia Wagner Group to march on Moscow over the weekend.
Meanwhile, President Joe Biden sai that the United States was not involved in the aborted weekend rebellion in Russia.
"We made clear we are not involved, we had nothing to do with it, this was part of a struggle within the Russian system," Biden said from the White House.
Prigozhin's private militia Wagner Group on Saturday seized control of the strategic city of Rostov and advanced an armed convoy to within 200 kilometers of Moscow. Less than 24 hours later, the rebellion was over, and Prigozhin announced that Wagner would be turning back in order to avoid spilling Russian blood.
The rebellion has raised questions about President Vladimir Putin's grip on power and what could be next for the country.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Sunday that the mutiny exposed "cracks" in Moscow, while Eurasia Group President Ian Bremmer told CNBC on Monday that despite the deal, Prigozhin is a "dead man walking."
Russia's defense ministry said Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu visited troops in occupied Ukraine Monday, in his first public appearance since the weekend. Shoigu's future had been called into question following the mutiny, but the Telegram post indicates that he remains in charge.
Wagner Group leader Yevgeny Prigozhin has reportedly been exiled to Belarus.