Criminal case against Prigozhin is to be closed and he will go to Belarus – Putin’s spokesman
The criminal case against Wagner Group leader Yevgeny Prigozhin is to be closed and he will "go to Belarus", Dmitry Peskov, the press secretary of the President of the Russian Federation, has announced.
Source: Russian state-owned media outlet TASS, citing Peskov
Details: Peskov does not know who Prigozhin will work for after he leaves for Belarus.
According to the press secretary, the Russian authorities will not prosecute Wagner Group fighters who took part in the rebellion, in consideration of their frontline contributions. Some of the Wagner fighters who initially refused to participate in Prigozhin's "campaign" will sign contracts with the Ministry of Defence.
Peskov also said that Moscow is highly appreciative of the mediation efforts of Alexander Lukashenko, the self-proclaimed president of Belarus. Lukashenko put himself forward as a negotiator, since he has known Prigozhin for over 20 years.
Peskov said no further TV address by President Vladimir Putin is planned.
He also stated that reshuffles in the Ministry of Defence are the prerogative of the president and were unlikely to be discussed during talks to settle the rebellion. However, Peskov is unaware of any changes in Putin's level of trust in his defence minister.
Peskov stated that the situation with the mutiny will have no effect on the course of the Russian Federation's war against Ukraine.
The press secretary also insisted that Putin supposedly kept on working in the Kremlin all day.
Background:
- On the evening of 23 June, Wagner Group leader Yevgeny Prigozhin claimed that the regular Russian army had launched a missile strike on the Wagner mercenaries’ rear camps. He deployed 25,000 of his mercenaries "to restore justice".
- On the morning of 24 June, Prigozhin claimed that his forces had taken control of military facilities in Rostov-on-Don, including the air base, and were heading "to Moscow", and that his soldiers had shot down three Russian helicopters. Wagner mercenaries also seized military facilities in the Russian city of Voronezh.
- In an emergency address on 24 June, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that Russia was "fighting for survival" and that attempts were being made to "organise a rebellion" in the country.
- Russian media reported that the Office of the President of the Russian Federation anticipated that Yevgeny Prigozhin’s Wagner Group fighters would likely reach Moscow’s outskirts in the next few hours, with fighting expected near Russia’s capital. Ukrainian intelligence had information that Putin had urgently left Moscow for his residence in Valdai. A convoy of Wagner Group forces was spotted only 400 kilometres away from Moscow.
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