Russian officials are planning to topple Vladimir Putin as president.
Yevgeny Prigozhin could replace Vladimir Putin
Former loyalist Igor Strelkov claims that the fight for the "political Olympus" is underway as Putin faces the consequences of his disastrous war in Ukraine.
Strelkov is an ex-FSB colonel who had an important role in Putin's annexation of Crimea in 2014 but has been a staunch critic of the tyrant's war strategy.
Speaking on video, he said: "The fight for the political Olympus has begun between the groupings that surround Putin.
"The battle to replace him is raging to the extent that 'even we can notice it'."
Strelkov claims that Putin crony Yevgeny Prigozhin - the head of the Wagner private army - is going up against allies of the defence minister Sergei Shoigu.
Others claim that former FSB chief Nikolai Patrushev could pull the trigger on Putin's leadership to save the Kremlin's inner circle should the war continue to go wrong.
His son, the agriculture minister Dmitry Patrushev, is another figure tipped to succeed Putin should the despot lose the war or deteriorate due to health problems.
Strelkov said: "The grouping of Yevgeny Prigozhin stands against groupings which includes Sergei Shoigu.
"They have already started the fight. They are not fighting over the number of shells…
"Now we are speaking about what comes after Putin. Will it happen in one year or two? We don't know."