In latest update, the governor of Russia’s Lipetsk province said the Wagner mercenary group has entered the region.
“All those who prepared the rebellion will suffer inevitable punishment,” Putin said. “The armed forces and other government agencies have received the necessary orders.”
“We didn’t kill a single person on our way,” Prigozhin said in one of his several messages posted as the day went on, adding that his forces seized the military headquarters “without a single gunshot.” His claims could not be independently verified. The Russian authorities haven’t reported any casualties so far, either.
FILE – Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, left, and Chief of the Russian General Staff Valery Gerasimov attend the meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin during his visit to the joint staff of troops involved in Russia’s military operation in Ukraine, at an unknown location, Saturday, Dec. 17, 2022. Russian military leaders have remained silent as they faced angry rants from Yevgeny Prigozhin, the maverick millionaire head of the private military contractor Wagner.
He gained attention in the U.S. when he and a dozen other Russian nationals and three Russian companies were charged with operating a covert social media campaign aimed at fomenting discord ahead of Donald Trump’s 2016 presidential election victory. He formed the Wagner mercenary group, which sent military contractors to Libya, Syria, several African countries and eventually Ukraine.
Ramzan Kadyrov, the strongman leader of the Chechnya region who used to side with Prigozhin in his criticism of the military, also expressed his full support of Putin’s “every word.” Zelenskyy noted the rebellion in his Telegram channel and said “anyone who chooses the path of evil destroys himself.” Military trucks and armored vehicles were seen in central Moscow early Saturday, and soldiers with assault rifles were deployed outside the main Defense Ministry building. The area around the presidential administration near Red Square was blocked, snarling traffic.
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