Global Courant
The Russian president called Yevgeny Prigozhin’s attitude “a stab in the back.” The private militia controls the city of Rostov-on-Don. Security has been tightened in Moscow.
Russian President Vladimir Putin promised this Saturday to punish the “betrayal” of the head of the Wagner paramilitary group, whose rebellion against the Russian military command means a “mortal threat” and the risk of “civil war” for the country in the midst of the war with Ukraine.
Wearing a black suit and tie, a serious face and a martial tone, the Russian president addressed, without explicitly naming him, the man who challenges him, Yevgeny Prigozhin.
“It is a stab in the back for our country and our people,” Putin declared during a speech to the nation.
“What we are facing is exactly a betrayal. A betrayal brought about by excessive ambition and personal interests” of Prigozhin, the Kremlin chief added, vowing “punishment”.
After Putin’s speech, Wagner’s boss replied that the Russian president is “very wrong” to accuse the paramilitaries of “treason”. “We are patriots. Nobody plans to surrender at the request of the president, the security services or anyone else,” Prigozhin said, criticizing the Kremlin for the first time.
Men from Wagner’s militia block streets in Rostov-on-Don. Photo: EFE/Arkady Budnitsky.
Previously, the paramilitary leader announced the seizure of the Russian army headquarters in Rostov, the nerve center of operations in Ukraine, and assured that he controls several military installations.
“Rostov’s military sites are under control, including the airfield,” Prigozhin said in a video posted on Telegram.
In his speech, Putin noted that the situation in Rostov was “difficult.”
Halfway between Rostov and Moscow, the governor of Russia’s Voronezh region indicated that the army was carrying out “combat” actions as part of an “anti-terrorist operation” to control the uprising. A fuel depot caught fire, he added.
Extreme security in Moscow
The authorities reinforced security measures in Moscow, where an “anti-terrorist operation regime” was established, a direct consequence of Prigozhin’s threat, who in an audio message released on Telegram warned that his forces will go “to the end” and will to “destroy everything that stands” in his way.
Prigozhin, 62, released a series of messages on Friday night and early Saturday morning stating that he and his troops had entered the Russian city of Rostov, a major city of more than a million people in the south of the country. , and that they seized their military installations.
For months, Prigozhin has been involved in a power struggle with the Russian military commanders, whom he accuses of the casualties of his troops in eastern Ukraine, and on Saturday accused the Russian military commander of ordering bombardments against the bases of his group. paramilitary and having killed many of its combatants.
The head of this parallel army affirmed that the Russian military leaders had to be “stopped” and promised to “go to the end.”
Putin gave a televised speech to denounce Prigozhin’s “betrayal”. Photo: EFE/Sergei Ilnitsky.
This rebellion represents the most serious challenge Putin has faced during his long tenure, and the most significant security crisis for Russia since the former spy came to power in late 1999.
The internal conflict in Russia could divert attention and resources from the full offensive in Ukraine, and also coincides with the counteroffensive announced by kyiv to recover territories.
The Ukrainian military has indicated that it is “observing” the infighting between Prigozhin and Putin. Moscow, meanwhile, warned that the Ukrainian army was taking advantage of the situation to rally its troops near Bakhmut for an offensive.
