While Preghozin has captured Western media attention and is presently in the spotlight, it is worth spending time contemplating Viktor Zolotov, who runs the 400,000-strong National Guard of Russia. This is presently the de facto praetorian guard of Vladimir Putin, but as Putin loses credibility it is plausible to imagine Zolotov leveraging his total control over this organization to move swiftly and decapitate potential rivals. Wagner Group is a fraction of the size and its personnel are almost entirely outside of Moscow, whereas Zolotov's forces are literally everywhere that matters.