Wagner group chief will transfer to Belarus to keep away from arrest: Kremlin
By Associated Press: The rebellious Russian mercenary commander who ordered his troops to march on Moscow earlier than abruptly reversing course will transfer to neighboring Belarus and never face prosecution, the Kremlin mentioned Saturday, as a part of a deal to defuse a disaster that represented essentially the most vital problem to President Vladimir Putin in his greater than 20 years in energy.
The fees towards Yevgeny Prigozhin for mounting an armed riot might be dropped and the troops who joined him additionally won’t be prosecuted, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov introduced, and fighters from his Wagner Group who didn’t participate within the rebellion might be provided contracts by the Defense Ministry.
The deal appeared to defuse a dramatically escalating disaster that represented essentially the most vital problem to President Vladimir Putin in his greater than 20 years in energy. The deal was mediated by Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, a staunch Putin ally.
A rebellious Russian mercenary commander mentioned Saturday he ordered his troops to halt their march on Moscow and retreat to area camps in Ukraine, showing to defuse a dramatically escalating disaster that represented essentially the most vital problem to President Vladimir Putin in his greater than 20 years in energy.
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Moscow had braced for the arrival of forces from the Wagner Group, a personal military led by Yevgeny Prigozhin that has been preventing alongside common Russian troops in Ukraine, by erecting checkpoints with armored automobiles and troops on town’s southern edge. Red Square was shut down, and the mayor urged motorists to remain off some roads.
But Prigozhin introduced that whereas his males had been simply 200 kilometers (120 miles) from Moscow, he determined to show them again to keep away from “shedding Russian blood.” He didn’t say whether or not the Kremlin had responded to his demand to oust Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu. There was no rapid remark from Putin’s authorities.
The turnaround adopted a press release from Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko’s workplace saying he had negotiated a take care of Prigozhin after discussing the problem with Putin. Prigozhin agreed to halt the advance in a proposed settlement together with safety ensures for Wagner troops, Lukashenko’s workplace mentioned, with out elaborating.
Putin had vowed harsh penalties for organizers of the armed rebellion led by his onetime protege, who introduced his forces out of Ukraine, seized a key army facility in southern Russia and superior towards Moscow. It wasn’t instantly clear what concessions, if any, Putin could have made to Prigozhin.
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If he accedes to Shoigu’s ouster, Prigozhin would emerge from the disaster as a transparent winner in a serious blow to Putin’s authority. If Prigozhin drops that demand, Putin may award him with extra profitable authorities contracts like these on which he has constructed his fortune.
However, it could be awkward and politically damaging for Putin to backtrack after branding Prigozhin a backstabbing traitor.
Some observers speculated that Prigozhin may make concessions reminiscent of placing the Wagner Group below federal authority, or he may shift the power’s actions again to Africa, the place his mercenaries have been energetic in recent times.
Early Saturday, Prigozhin’s personal military appeared to manage the army headquarters in Rostov-on-Don, a metropolis 660 miles (over 1,000 kilometers) south of Moscow, which runs Russian operations in Ukraine, Britain’s Ministry of Defense mentioned.
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