Global Courant
China and Russia discuss ‘issues of common concern’
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrei Rudenko on Sunday discussed “international and regional issues of common concern” with Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang, China’s foreign ministry said in a one-line statement on Sunday.
At a meeting in China’s capital Beijing, the pair also discussed Sino-Russian relations, the statement said:
It was not clear when Rudenko arrived in Beijing, or whether his visit to China, a key ally of Russia, was in response to the apparent uprising by Wagner Group mercenaries on Friday.
Blinken discusses ‘continuing situation in Russia’ with Polish FM
State Secretary Antony Blinken discussed the “ongoing situation in Russia” with Polish Foreign Minister Zbigniew Rau, a Foreign Ministry spokesman said.
In their phone call, Blinken welcomed Poland’s “continued assistance to Ukraine and its people, and underlined that US support for Ukraine will not change,” said Matthew Miller.
The mayor of Rostov complains that Wagner is forcing damaged roads
Military vehicles used as Wagner Group mercenaries marched into Rostov-on-Don damaged a number of roads, the city’s mayor told state media on Sunday.
Alexei Logvinenko said more than 10,000 square meters (12,000 yards) of roads needed repair in a post on this Telegram channel, alongside photos of the damage.
Budennovsky Avenue, a major historic road in the city center leading to the Don River, was most damaged by the group, he said, adding that repairs would begin on Sunday.
Traffic restrictions remain in place on the major highway connecting Moscow to the south
Traffic restrictions remain in place on a major highway in Moscow and the Tula region, Russia’s federal road agency Avtodor told state media on Sunday.
The M-4 “Don connects Moscow to the southern regions of Russia, and travel from the Russian capital and the Lipetsk region was temporarily restricted.
Avtodor had advised drivers to avoid the M-4 on Saturday amid reports that convoys of Wagner fighters were using the road.
Ukraine targets the captured city where Wagner Group aided Russian victory
The Ukrainian army said on Saturday it had made progress near Bakhmut, the eastern city where Wagner Group troops helped secure a much-needed victory for Russian President Vladimir Putin last month.
Ukraine’s deputy defense minister Hanna Maliar reported “progress in all directions” in a Telegram post. She said her country’s armed forces had launched offensives in a ring of villages surrounding the city.
Russian forces first attempted to take Bakhmut in August 2022, increasingly relying on Wagner forces to hold out in the invasion’s longest and bloodiest battle.
Several helicopters downed during uprising, Russian media report
Several helicopters and a military communications plane were shot down by Wagner forces during the short-lived uprising, Russian media reported late Saturday.
Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin previously said his troops had taken control of the military headquarters in Rostov-on-Don, as well as other military facilities in the city without any deaths or even “a single shot”.
The Kremlin referred the question of the losses to the Defense Ministry, which has not commented on the matter.
Putin is weakening despite end of insurgency, former US ambassador to Russia says
President Vladimir Putin appeared relatively unscathed in the wake of a failed attempt to upend the Russian military, but a former US ambassador to Russia said he may never be the same.
Win or lose, Prigozhin’s attempt to bend military leadership to his will would have kept Putin the country’s top leader, said Michael McFaul, the former US ambassador to Russia under then-President Barack. Obama.
Nevertheless, the coup attempt watched around the world left the leader with less power, McFaul said on NBC Nightly News Saturday.
“I don’t think he’s mortally weakened,” said McFaul, another former Obama adviser who specialized in Russia. “I think he can survive this. But he is much weaker today than he was 24 hours ago.”
Blinken assures that the US Secretary of State of Ukraine remains firm
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken assured the Ukrainian foreign minister that US support for his nation is unwavering.
Blinken spoke with Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba on Saturday about the aftermath of the Wagner uprising.
The consequences of the apparent withdrawal for Ukraine were not clear, but Blinken spokesman Matthew Miller reiterated that the United States, Ukraine’s largest insurer during the war, will remain undaunted.
“The United States’ support for Ukraine will not change,” Miller said. “The United States will work closely with Ukraine as the situation develops.”
