On Friday, June 23, Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) ordered the arrest of Yevgeny Prigozhin, the pinnacle of the Wagner mercenary group. This comes after Russian intelligence alleged that Prigozhin was inciting an “armed rebellion”.
With this, the long-running dispute between Russian mercenary boss Yevgeny Prigozhin and the army’s prime echelon over the Ukraine battle has been uncovered.
The Federal Security Service, or FSB, introduced the felony case, implying that Prigozhin may be arrested quickly for remarks through which he said that he was planning a “march of justice” towards his foes in Russia’s Ministry of Defence. The Wagner mercenary chief, nevertheless, denied any try at a army coup.
Prigozhin, a former confidant of Russian President Vladimir Putin, demanded revenge after saying that the Russian army killed “an enormous amount” of his forces within the strikes launched on Friday on Wagner camps. The Russian army refuted these strikes occurred, including that there was no unbiased proof to help his assertion.
In an audio recording posted on Wagner group’s social media on Friday, Prigozhin mentioned, “The evil that the military leadership of the country brings forward must be stopped. They have forgotten the word justice, and we will return it. Anyone attempting resistance will be considered a threat and immediately destroyed. This includes all the checkpoints on our path and any aircraft above our heads.”
Prigozhin accused Russian Defence Minister Sergey Shoigu of flying to Rostov in southern Russia notably to launch a missile strike towards Wagner earlier than abandoning the realm late Friday in a number of audio recordings.
The Russian Defence Ministry, nevertheless, reacted to Prigozhin’s threats, dismissing his assertion that the army had hit a Wagner camp as “an informational provocation.”
“The Russian Federation’s armed forces continue to carry out combat missions on the line of contact with Ukraine’s armed forces in the area of the special military operation,” the ministry mentioned.
Social media movies confirmed armoured autos stationed in central Moscow, particularly on the roads the place the Federation Council, Russia’s higher home of parliament, and the Prosecutor General’s Office are located.
#SONDAKİKA | Moskova’da askeri hareketlilik
– Rus Ordusu’na ait zırhlı araçlar, Moskova şehir merkezine konuşlandırıldı. pic.twitter.com/ET6tLmilSR
— SavunmaSanayiST.com (@SavunmaSanayiST) June 23, 2023
According to Russian media experiences, Wagner forces have gained management of the Southern Military District constructing in Rostov, prompting safety to be heightened throughout Moscow. Moscow’s safety forces are on excessive alert, and safety has been ramped up in authorities buildings, transport services, and different very important areas.
Rostov space governor Vasily Golubev said on Saturday that each one public mass occasions slated for the weekend within the metropolis have been cancelled. He mentioned that public transit remained operational, however that downtown routes had been adjusted, and that sure limits had been imposed on roads resulting in Taganrog, west of Rostov-on-Don, and north of town.
Wagner, based on Prigozhin’s assertion in May this 12 months, misplaced 20,000 troops within the months-long battle for Bakhmut, which left the Ukrainian metropolis in ruins. Wagner has performed a essential function within the struggle as probably the most combat-efficient Russian drive in Ukraine. It has earlier reportedly clashed briefly with common Russian forces in Bakhmut this month, detaining the commander of a Russian brigade whom Prigozhin claimed of mining the highway utilized by Wagner because it retreated from town.