Ukraine has a flurry of calls with allies after Moscow disorder

FILE PHOTO: Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy attends a joint press conference with African leaders, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine June 16, 2023. REUTERS/Valentyn Ogirenko/File Photo

KYIV (Reuters) -Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and his defence minister said they held a series of calls with Kyiv's allies on Sunday to discuss the "weakness" of Russia's President Vladimir Putin and Ukraine's next counteroffensive steps.

The phone calls took place after an extraordinary failed mutiny by the head of Russia's Wagner mercenary group, Yevgeny Prigozhin, that raised questions about Putin's grip on power as Ukraine presses a counteroffensive in its south and east.