At the end of a spectacular mutiny which brought the paramilitary group Wagner to less than 400 kilometers from Moscow before giving up, Evgueni Prigojine must in principle go into exile in Belarus, an ally of Moscow, and redraw new relations with President Vladimir Putin .
Ferocious critic of the Russian military strategy in Ukraine, Evgueni Prigojine will escape any legal proceedings, promised the Kremlin, without it being known when this departure with the paces of exile is planned, nor where is the tempestuous boss of Wagner.
First appearance of the Minister of Defense on TV
Russian public television broadcast, on Monday, June 26, images of Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu inspecting Russian forces in Ukraine, his first public appearance after the abortive rebellion of the paramilitary group Wagner.
According to excerpts broadcast by the Rossia 24 television channel, Sergei Shoigu, the target of fierce criticism from Wagner chief Evgeny Prigozhin, went to a command post of Russian forces in Ukraine and “held a meeting there with those responsible ” of one of the units.
Withdrawal of Wagner’s forces, the Putin camp undermined by “divisions” according to the West
The forces of the paramilitary group Wagner retreated to Russia on Sunday, putting an end to the rebellion launched by their leader Yevgueni Prigojine which shook the Kremlin and revealed, in the eyes of Westerners, “cracks” and “divisions” in the camp of Vladimir Poutine.
During a 24-hour expedition that led his militias less than 400 km from Moscow, or even 200 according to him, he frontally challenged the master of the Kremlin, before ordering his men to return to their bases, at the end, according to the official version, of mediation by the Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko, the Kremlin’s only European ally. In a sign that the urgency of the crisis had passed, Wagner’s fighters left the Voronezh and Lipetsk regions south of Moscow on Sunday, according to local authorities.
More than 17,000 Ukrainian soldiers trained in a year in a program led by London
More than 17,000 new Ukrainian soldiers have been trained in a year in a program led by the United Kingdom as part of its support for Kiev in the face of the Russian invasion, British Defense announced on Monday. The program, intended for recruits with little or no military experience, consists of providing at least five weeks of training, including weapons handling, first aid, law of war, patrol tactics and training in rural environment.
It was implemented by the United Kingdom, as well as the armies of nine other countries: Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Norway, Finland, Sweden, Denmark, Lithuania and the Netherlands. “The determination and resilience of Ukrainian recruits who arrive on British soil, from all backgrounds, to train alongside our British and international forces is humbling,” said British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace. “The UK and our partners will continue to provide this vital support, helping Ukraine defend itself against Russian aggression, for as long as it takes,” he added in a statement.
Aborted Wagner rebellion: 19 houses damaged and damaged roadway (local authorities)
About fifteen houses and more than 10,000 m2 of roadway were damaged during the armed rebellion of the Wagner group in Russia, local authorities announced on Sunday, giving a first partial assessment of these events which shook Russian power.
With his fighters, the businessman took control of the city of Rostov (south) and his convoy crossed several regions, to the point of approaching a few hundred kilometers from Moscow, causing amazement in Russia and the stranger.
In the Voronezh region, bordering Ukraine and stage of this abortive march towards the Russian capital, “19 houses were damaged in the village”, said Sunday on Telegram the head of the district of Pavlovsky. This damage took place “following a clash that took place near Elizavetovka, in the Pavlovsky district, on June 24, when a column of the Wagner group crossed our region”, he said. precise.
On the Eastern front, no changes after Wagner’s aborted rebellion
In the aftermath of the armed rebellion led by Evgueni Prigojine and his Wagner men in Russia, the Kiev army said on Sunday that it saw no major change on the front around Bakhmout, in eastern Ukraine. “Most of the troops understand that this is a circus, that the Russians have not left. They are still in their positions,” observes Nazar, 26, a bearded soldier parked in a gas station, on a road in the Bakhmout area.
The city of Bakhmout, in the Donbass, was for several months the epicenter of violent fighting between Ukrainian forces and those of the paramilitary group Wagner, led by their tempestuous leader, Evgueni Prigojine. Despite its capture in May by the businessman’s fighters, who then returned control of the area to the regular Russian army, hostilities with troops from kyiv continue.
The Ukrainian army has even been leading a counter-offensive there for several weeks, advancing slightly on the flanks, at the same time as it tries to break through the Russian defenses on the southern front, several hundred kilometers away. But events accelerated when Yevgeny Prigojine launched an armed rebellion on Russian soil on Friday, his convoy taking control of a military center in Rostov (southwest Russia) and heading towards Moscow, to the point of closer to a few hundred kilometers from the Russian capital.
Russia recommends day off for journalists after ‘tense’ weekend
Russian authorities on Sunday advised media companies to give their employees a day off after what was described as a “tense” Saturday marked by the country’s aborted Wagner Group rebellion. Faced with the unprecedented situation in the history of Russia in recent years, the authorities of Moscow, the Russian capital, had introduced “anti-terrorist” measures, then announced that Monday was declared a holiday.
And despite the end of the short-lived revolt on Saturday evening following an agreement between Evgueni Prigojine and the Kremlin, the Moscow City Hall had assured that Monday remained a day off. On Sunday, the Russian Ministry of Digital Transformation issued a statement recommending journalists and IT specialists to take a rest after a “tense” weekend.