Global Courant
State officials and foreign ministers weighed in on the news that the mercenary Wagner Group and its leader, Yevgeny Prigozhin, have begun a march on Moscow and that Russian President Vladimir Putin vowed to quell any uprising.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken tweeted on Saturday: “Talked today with G7 foreign ministers and the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy to discuss the current situation in Russia. The United States will work closely with Allies and partners as the situation continues to evolve.”
Also the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement Saturday warned all Western countries “against any hint of possible use of the domestic situation to achieve their Russophobic goals”.
“Such efforts are futile and will not find a response either in Russia or from sensible political forces abroad,” the statement said. “We are confident that in the near future the situation will find a solution worthy of the age-old wisdom of the Russian people and the Russian state.”
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The Wagner group has pushed into Russia 60 miles and claims to have captured the city of Rostov-on-Don, from where the Russian military command coordinated the assault on Ukraine. Prigozhin began the march after claiming on Friday that the Kremlin had authorized an attack on his troops, which had killed a “massive number” of his troops.
Prigozhin demanded that the military command speak with him in Rostov-on-Don, otherwise he will continue his “march for justice” to Moscow.
The world continues to watch as the situation develops, with many foreign officials sharing their views on social media.
National Security Council spokesman Adam Hodge said Friday night: “We are monitoring the situation and will consult with allies and partners on these developments.”
Members of the Wagner group inspect a car on a street of Rostov-on-Don, on June 24, 2023. President Vladimir Putin said on June 24, 2023 that an armed mutiny by Wagner mercenaries was a “stab in the back” and that the The group’s leader, Yevgeny Prigozhin, had betrayed Russia, vowing to punish the dissidents. Prigozhin said his fighters control key military sites in the southern city of Rostov-on-Don. (Stringer/AFP via Getty Images)
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said, “Anyone who chooses the way of evil destroys himself.”
“For a long time Russia used propaganda to mask its weakness and the stupidity of its government. And now there is so much chaos that no lie can hide it,” Zelensky added. “Russia’s weakness is obvious. Complete weakness. And the longer Russia keeps its troops and mercenaries on our land, the more chaos, pain and trouble it will have for itself later.”
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British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak told the BBC during an interview on Saturday morning that his government is “monitoring this situation closely as it is evolving locally at the moment”.
“The most important thing I would say is that all sides are accountable and protect civilians, and that’s about as much as I can say at the moment,” he added, saying he is “in touch with our allies.”
A man speaks with fighters from the private mercenary group Wagner deployed on a street near the headquarters of the Southern Military District in the city of Rostov-on-Don, Russia, June 24, 2023. A sign on a tank reads: “Siberia.” REUTERS/Stringer (Reuters)
British Foreign Secretary James Cleverly tweeted a similar sentiment, adding that the UK is also “in close contact with our allies”.
China, which has moved ever closer to Russia since the beginning of its invasion of Ukraine, and especially Putin, has remained silent after Wagner’s advance on Moscow.
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Belarus, a close ally of Russia during the invasion of Ukraine, called the internal dispute “a gift to the collective West”.
German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock has “discussed the situation with G7 foreign ministers” as the government’s crisis team meets, a German Foreign Ministry spokesman said of the situation.
“For 100 years Lithuanians have been living on the fringes of Moscow’s ruthless banditocracy, knowing that it is only a matter of time before the next chaotic implosion,” Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis wrote on Twitter. “We will not be distracted. We see clearly in the chaos. The goal, as always, is victory and justice for Ukraine. The time is now.”
Lavia’s foreign minister Edgars Rinkevics said his country has strengthened border security and that “visas or border entry of Russians leaving Russia due to current events will not be considered”, adding that the country has determined “at this time no direct threat to Latvia”.
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Estonia similarly stressed that it determined that there is “no immediate threat to our country” and has also strengthened border security, urging citizens “not to travel to any part of Russia”.
Meanwhile, French President Emmanuel Macron said only that his government was closely monitoring the situation and taking advantage of the moment to emphasize that it should “remain focused on supporting Ukraine”.
Fox News Digital’s Chris Pandolfo and Reuters contributed to this report.
Peter Aitken is a Fox News Digital reporter with a focus on national and global news.
