“He was a man with a complicated destiny, who made serious mistakes, but who achieved the necessary results.” Vladimir Putin paid tribute, Thursday, August 24, to Evgueni Prigojine, the day after the crash which cost the life of the boss of the Wagner group, and offered his condolences to the relatives of the ten victims.
On the ground, the Russian Ministry of Defense claimed early Friday to have shot down 42 Ukrainian drones in Crimea, describing an attack of a rare scale against the peninsula annexed by Moscow in 2014.
Russia claims to have shot down 42 Ukrainian drones in Crimea
“Nine drones were destroyed as a result of the impact of fire over the territory of the Republic of Crimea. 33 drones were neutralized by means of electronic warfare and crashed without reaching (their) target”, a indicated the Russian Defense on Telegram. The ministry did not provide information on any damage or casualties following the destruction of the devices.
Sevastopol Governor Mikhail Razvojayev had earlier reported that several aircraft had been shot down off the peninsula “in the area of Cape Chersonese” located about 10 km from Sevastopol, home port of the Russian Black Sea Fleet. Ukraine congratulated itself on Thursday for having carried out a rare commando operation in annexed Crimea and for having hoisted the national flag there, a symbolic success in this bastion considered impregnable by Moscow for Independence Day.
Putin talks about Prigozhin in the past tense after his alleged death in a crash
Vladimir Putin offered his condolences after the crash in Russia of the plane of Yevgueni Prigojine, boss of the Russian paramilitary group Wagner, speaking in the past of this ex-ally with a “complicated” destiny, at work in Africa and Ukraine but who had turned his men against Moscow in June. “He was a man with a complicated destiny, who made serious mistakes in his life, but who got the results he needed,” Vladimir Putin said during a meeting broadcast on television, offering his “sincere condolences to the relatives of the victims.
None of the passengers on the private jet survived, but authorities have yet to formally announce Yevgeny Prigozhin’s death as the bodies have not been identified. The Kremlin’s reaction was eagerly awaited as the presumed death of Yevgueni Prigojine, described by Vladimir Putin as a “traitor” in June, aroused suspicion, two months to the day after his abortive coup. Referring to the investigation into the causes of the crash, the circumstances of which are the subject of all speculation, in particular on a bomb attack or the firing of a missile, the Russian president promised to “conduct it in its entirety and to reach a conclusion”.
Ukrainian pilots trained in the F-16 in the United States from September
The United States announced Thursday that it would train Ukrainian pilots from September in the handling of the F-16 fighter plane, a device that Westerners have long been reluctant to provide to Kiev. “These pilots will take English training” in Texas in September, before “taking part in pilot training” in Arizona (southwest) the following month, said Pentagon spokesman General Pat Ryder. .
President Joe Biden later discussed this training with his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky in a phone call. The two leaders spoke of “guaranteeing rapid approval for other nations to transfer their F-16s to Ukraine upon completion of training,” according to a White House statement. Earlier Thursday, Norway announced that it would become the third country to supply copies of the American-designed aircraft to Ukraine, following clearance from Washington.
No evidence that a surface-to-air missile shot down Prigozhin’s plane, Pentagon says
There is no indication that a surface-to-air missile shot down the plane carrying the boss of the Russian paramilitary group Wagner Yevgeny Prigojine, the Pentagon said Thursday. The U.S. military has “no information that a surface-to-air missile” was involved in Wednesday’s crash, spokesman Pat Ryder said. Reports of the use of such a weapon are “inaccurate”, he added.
“We estimate, based on a number of factors, that he was probably killed,” he said without giving further details.
Ukraine: François Hollande responds to Sarkozy
Former Socialist President François Hollande pointed out Nicolas Sarkozy’s “errors” on Ukraine on Thursday, affirming, unlike his predecessor, that it was necessary to continue to support Ukraine and provide it with weapons, during a seminar in front of elected socialists in Blois. The former head of state also insisted that the European socialists – therefore including the French socialists – be “on the initiative on this question”, a way of inviting them to refuse a common list for European women with the Nudes.
In a interview in Figaro in mid-August, former President Nicolas Sarkozy estimated that Ukraine, invaded on February 24, 2022 by Russia, should “remain neutral” and join neither NATO nor the European Union, suggesting “a international agreement providing for extremely strong security assurances to protect it against any risk”. Nicolas Sarkozy also judged that in Crimea, annexed in 2014 by Russia, “any backtracking is illusory”. For him, “an indisputable referendum […] will be necessary to confirm the current state of affairs”.