Zelenskyy: There is information that Putin killed Prigozhin
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy considers Russian President Vladimir Putin responsible for the death of Yevgeny Prigozhin, founder of the Wagner Group.
Source: BBC News Russian Service, citing the president's statement in Kyiv
Quote from Zelenskyy: "Putin is down – as a person and as a politician. He killed Prigozhin; at least we have this information."
Details: Zelenskyy said that for Ukraine, this is simply "one less terrorist".
Zelenskyy also added that the morale of the Russians had fallen because they were hiding behind Wagnerites – "they were thrown forward; they were not allowed to go back".
"I think that this protection, which is covered by the lives of mercenaries, Wagnerites, has been lost. This is definitely an advantage for us," the Ukrainian president concluded.
Background:
- On the evening of 23 August, a small plane crashed in Tver Oblast, Russia, and Rosaviatsiya claimed that the passengers included Yevgeny Prigozhin.
- The Grey Zone Telegram channel, which is close to the Wagner Group, claimed that Yevgeny Prigozhin's plane was shot down by air defence fire. It was also written that a terrorist attack on board was being considered as a line of enquiry into the crash of Prigozhin's plane.
- Rosaviatsia shared a full list of passengers on the plane that crashed in Tver Oblast on the evening of 23 August, including Yevgeny Prigozhin.
- The Russian media saw some symbolism in the fact that the plane crash occurred on 23 August, exactly two months after the Wagner Group’s mutiny [Prigozhin announced his "justice march" on the evening of 23 June – ed.].
- Analysts at the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) were of the opinion that Vladimir Putin took revenge for the humiliation of the mutiny and ordered the destruction of the Wagner Group’s leadership.
- US President Joe Biden suggested that Russian President Vladimir Putin might be behind the plane crash.
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