Yevgeny Prigozhin’s short-lived “coup” attempt — if we indeed witnessed one — has left many understandably confused.

One thing should be clear, however.

This is the beginning of the end of Russia’s war in Ukraine — and likely also of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s rule.

First, here is what we know about the odd events of the past two days.

After almost a year of Wagner Group owner Prigozhin’s near-constant and escalating verbal attacks against Russia’s Ministry of Defense, he commanded his mercenaries to march into Russia.

The “Wagnerites” took over two major Russian cities, Rostov and Voronezh, and appeared intent on continuing to Moscow, where Prigozhin wanted to settle accounts with Sergei Shoigu and Valery Gerasimov, respectively Russia’s defense minister and chief of the general staff, whom he blamed for bombing a Wagner Group camp earlier in the week.

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Well the Russian invasion of Russia turned out to be vastly more successful than the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

After 16 months of stalemate, with Russian forces bogged down by incompetence, corruption and infighting, the Ukraine war yesterday boomeranged right back at Vladimir Putin.

The rebellion by his Wagner militia is the most significant challenge to him since he came to power 23 years ago.

And though Putin´s former ally Yevgeny Prigozhin pulled back his advance on Moscow – allegedly to avoid bloodshed – two things now seem clear.

The first is the likelihood that this is the beginning of the end of the war in Ukraine.

Russian forces have been at a stalemate for over a year now, having failed to seize the Ukrainian capital in the opening days of the war, and proving unable to gain any significant new territory since.

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After a night of Russian missile strikes on Kyiv apartment buildings killed three people, you’d expect the mood Saturday to be somber.

The air-raid alerts started more than two hours before the Ukrainian capital’s midnight curfew Friday and continued with cellphones blasting sirens at nearly 6 a.m. 

But something much more important had happened in Russia itself: Yevgeny Prigozhin, whose mercenary Wagner Group just days ago was killing Ukrainians, captured military supply-hub Rostov and began a march to Moscow, the biggest challenge to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s rule since he took power in 2000. 

When I arrived in nearby Irpin, hit hard when invaded Feb. 24, 2022, I shook hands with former Mayor Volodymyr Karpliuk and remarked, “Good news from Russia.” 

“Da,” he agreed, a huge smile lighting up his face. 

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Russian President Vladimir Putin looked “nervous and almost rattled” Saturday when he delivered a speech as Wagner Group leader Yevgeny Prigozhin closed in on Moscow — and shouldn’t rest easy even after the mercenary leader called off the march on the capital, experts told The Post.

The Russian president “looked like someone who was not completely in control of the situation,” said Luke Coffey of the Hudson Institute.

“He used all the right words, but looking at his mannerisms, he looked nervous and almost rattled,” Coffey added.

In a televised address to his nation, the dictator promised to quash the Wagner Group’s “armed insurrection,” branding the mutiny as “treason” and a “stab in the back.”

The Russian strongman ripped the rebellion by the mercenary group, which had been assisting Moscow’s soldiers in the Ukraine, as undermining the united front necessary to continue the ongoing bloody conflict.

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The head of Chechnya, who slammed the Wagner Group's short-lived march to Moscow, claimed mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin grew resentful of the Russian government after his daughter was denied a piece of land in St. Petersburg.

Ramzan Kadyrov, who vowed that his soldiers would help protect the Kremlin on Saturday, claimed that he had spoken with Prigozhin prior to Saturday's rebellion — and warned the Wagner chief not to mix personal matters with issues of national importance.

"A chain of unsuccessful deals in entrepreneurship caused the businessman to have a hidden and long-lasting resentment, which reached a peak when the authorities of St. Petersburg did not provide his daughter with the desired land plot," Kadyrov wrote on Telegram. 

"The arrogance of one person could lead to such dangerous consequences and draw a large number of people into the conflict," he added.

Kadyrov said the rebellion has stoked up issues over who can actually be trusted in Moscow, given Prigozhin's long-time personal relationship with Putin and other leaders.

The Chechen head also called on Wagner fighters to think before they act on Prigozhin's orders.

"Now everything ended peacefully, without bloodshed, but it could happen. The extreme measure would be the harsh suppression and destruction of anyone who encroaches on the integrity of the Russian Federation," he warned.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken told Ukraine's foreign minister that America would continue its steady stream of support to fight Russia's invasion.

Blinken's spokesperson, Matthew Miller, said the secretary had reiterated America's commitment on Saturday to Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba following the Wagner rebellion.

"Support by the United States for Ukraine will not change," Miller said in a statement. "The United States will stay in close coordination with Ukraine as the situation develops."

Blinken had met with Kuleba in London earlier this week in a conference to signify the West's continued support of Ukraine in the war.

Blinken also echoed the promise of further aid to Ukraine in a Saturday call with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan.

Wagner Group boss Yevgeny Prigozhin’s current location is unknown, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Saturday night.

“No, I don’t know,” Peskov said during a press conference, according to CNN.

He made the comments hours after a video still showed Prigozhin sitting with Deputy Minister of Defense Yunus-Bek Yevkurov at the headquarters of the Russian Armed Forces in Rostov-on-Don following the announcement that his militants were no longer marching toward Moscow.

The Kremlin representative said earlier that the mercenary leader will not face criminal charges for his short-lived rebellion and will instead be exiled to Belarus after its President Aleksander Lukashenko negotiated the end of the rebellion. 

The fighters who marched with Prigozhin will also avoid prosecution due to their “service” on the front lines of Russia’s war in Ukraine. Those who did not join in the “mutiny” will be able to sign contracts to join the Russian Ministry of Defense, Peskov added.

He told reporters that he “cannot answer” exactly what the Wagner Group leader will do once in Belarus.  

A former member of Russia's Parliament said that while Wagner Group chief Yevgeny Prigozhin was "extremely aggressive," he was of no real threat to the Kremlin.

Sergey Markov said that Wagner's march to Moscow would not have resulted in violence given the popularity of both the mercenary group and President Vladimir Putin.

“They support Prigozhin fighting against (the) Ukrainian army but not against Vladimir Putin,” Markov told CNN, noting that the president was also polling at "about 80%."

Markov asserted that it was obvious Prigozhin would strike a deal and halt his march after walking away without blood being spilled, something he says Moscow is "happy" about.

"A lot of Russian militarists see Wagner fighters not as enemies but as real heroes because they don’t want to take part in the military clashes between them," Markov added of Wagner's role in the Ukraine war.

Saturday marks 16 months since the conflict began.

A top adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky appeared surprised at Wagner Group chief Yevgeny Prigozhin's sudden decision to stop marching toward Moscow Saturday.

Mykhailo Podolyak suggested Prigozhin faltered on an alleged attempt to take over the Kremlin after receiving a deal brokered by Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko.

"You almost nullified Putin, took control of the central authorities, reached Moscow and suddenly... you retreat," Podolyak tweeted. "Because one very specific intermediary with a dubious reputation (#Lukashenko) promised security guarantees from the person (#Putin) who ordered to destroy you in the morning."

The Ukrainian adviser warned Prigozhin that he will certainly be destroyed over the "fear that the Putin elite has experienced in the past 24 hours."

The alleged failed coup, however, was not without its merits Podolyak noted.

"#Prigozhin humiliated Putin/the state and showed that there is no longer a monopoly on violence," he tweeted.

The criminal case against Prigozhin will be dropped, with the Wagner leader set to be exiled to Belarus, the Kremlin said Saturday night.

The soldiers who marched with Prigozhin in the fleeting rebellion will also avoid prosecution for their "service" at the front lines of the Ukrainian war, officials said.

Vladimir Putin’s closest allies on the world stage said they had his back Saturday before Wagner Group leader Yevgeny Prigozhin called off his coup attempt — while Russia’s neighbors beefed up security along their shared borders, and China’s Xi Jinping remained silent.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey pledged “full support” for the embattled Russian leader in a phone call shortly after Putin vowed to “crush” what he called an “armed mutiny” in a speech early Saturday.

“The President of the Republic of Turkey expressed full support for the steps taken by the Russian leadership,” the Kremlin said in a readout of the call, CNN reported, while Erdogan’s office said he would assist in resolving the crisis “in a peaceful and calm way.”

Iran, too, affirmed support for Putin, as foreign ministry spokesperson Nasser Kanaani told state media that the mullahs “support the rule of law in the Russian Federation.”

Meanwhile, Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko, a key Putin ally, said he brokered the deal with Prigozhin to end the militia’s advance toward Moscow and enter negotiations with the Kremlin.

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Despite leading an alleged uprising against Moscow on Saturday, Wagner Group chief Yevgeny Prigozhin will not face criminal charges and will instead be exiled, the Kremlin said.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitri Peskov said the criminal case against Prigozhin will be dropped, with the Wagner leader set to go to Belarus, The New York Times reports.

The fighters who marched with Prigozhin in the rebellion will also avoid prosecution for their "service" at the front lines of the Ukrainian war.

Peskov added that any Wagner mercenary who did not participate in the "mutiny" will be eligible to sign contracts to join the Russian Ministry of Defense.

It remains unclear if the lack of ramifications against Wagner was part of the deal negotiated by Belarusian President Aleksander Lukashenko to halt the militant's advancement.