Russian President Putin met Wagner boss Prigozhin five days after aborted mutiny: Kremlin
The Kremlin said on Monday that Russian President Vladimir Putin met with Wagner mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin on June 29, five days after the group marched towards Moscow in a short-lived rebellion.
FollowThe Kremlin announced on Monday that Russian President Vladimir Putin had a meeting with Yevgeny Prigozhin, the chief of the Wagner mercenary group, on June 29. This meeting occurred five days after the group's short-lived rebellion, during which they marched towards Moscow. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov informed reporters that Putin invited 35 individuals to the meeting, including unit commanders, and it lasted for three hours. Peskov stated that the Wagner commanders expressed their loyalty to Putin, considering themselves his soldiers who would continue to fight for him.
The mutiny, led by Yevgeny Prigozhin, posed a significant challenge to Putin's hold on power since he assumed the role of Russia's paramount leader on December 31, 1999.
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The brief rebellion occurred in the southern city of Rostov but was defused through a negotiated deal facilitated by Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko. Putin subsequently expressed gratitude to the army and security services for preventing chaos and civil war.
Prigozhin clarified that the mutiny was not aimed at overthrowing the government but rather at holding the army and defense chiefs accountable for their alleged mistakes and unprofessional actions in Ukraine.
According to the agreement, Prigozhin was supposed to leave for Belarus, but Lukashenko recently revealed that he had returned to Russia. Moreover, the Wagner fighters had not yet taken up the offer to relocate to Belarus, raising concerns about the implementation of the agreement.
