President Vladimir Putin has held Kremlin talks with Wagner mercenary group founder Yevgeny Prigozhin and his commanders to debate the armed mutiny Wagner tried to mount in opposition to the military’s high brass, Putin’s spokesman mentioned on Monday.
The assembly was first reported by French newspaper Liberation, which mentioned Prigozhin had met Putin and the top of the Nationwide Guard, Viktor Zolotov, and SVR Overseas Intelligence boss Sergei Naryshkin.
The assembly, in line with Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, was held on June 29, 5 days after the aborted mutiny, which is broadly regarded to have posed essentially the most critical problem to Putin since he got here to energy on the final day of 1999.
Peskov instructed reporters that Putin had invited 35 folks to the assembly, together with Prigozhin and Wagner unit commanders, and that the assembly had lasted three hours.
“The one factor we will say is that the president gave his evaluation of the corporate’s (Wagner’s) actions on the entrance throughout the Particular Navy Operation (in Ukraine) and in addition gave his evaluation of the occasions of 24 June (the day of the mutiny),” Peskov instructed reporters.
He mentioned Putin had listened to the commanders’ personal explanations of what had occurred and had provided them additional choices for employment and fight.
“The commanders outlined their model of what occurred (on June 24). They emphasised that they’re staunch supporters and troopers of the top of state and the supreme commander-in-chief. In addition they mentioned that they’re able to proceed combating for the Motherland,” mentioned Peskov.
The temporary mutiny led by Prigozhin, by which Wagner fighters took management of the southern metropolis of Rostov-on-Don and a army headquarters constructing, was defused in a deal brokered by Belarusian chief Alexander Lukashenko.
Putin, who likened the occasions to the turmoil which engulfed Russia within the run-up to the 1917 Russian Revolution, has since thanked his military and safety companies for averting chaos and civil struggle.
Prigozhin has mentioned the mutiny was not aimed toward overthrowing the federal government however at “bringing to justice” the military and defence chiefs for what he known as their blunders and unprofessional actions in Ukraine.
Putin has to date stored Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu and Chief of the Basic Employees Valery Gerasimov in place, judging by appearances by each males on state TV – rejecting Prigozhin’s appeals to sack them.
Prigozhin was meant to depart for Belarus underneath the phrases of the deal that ended the mutiny. However Lukashenko mentioned final week that Prigozhin was again in Russia and that Wagner fighters had not but taken up a suggestion to relocate to Belarus, elevating questions concerning the implementation of the settlement.
SOURCE: REUTERS
