Yevgeny Prigozhin to be moved to Belarus, hours after audio message from mercenary leader see him call for troops to return to their bases
Wagner mercenary group boss Yevgeny Prigozhin and his troops won’t face criminal charges over his coup against Vladimir Putin, the Kremlin has confirmed.
The mercenary leader will be moved to Belarus, a close ally of Russia, after his mercenary army captured army bases in two Russian cities but called off their advance on Moscow at the 11th hour to “avoid bloodshed”.
The move marked a humiliating climbdown for Mr Putin after he earlier vowed to take revenge on those behind the mutiny.
The Kremlin confirmed on Saturday that the deal to end the rebellion was brokered by Belarusian president Alexander Lukashenko – a close ally of Mr Putin.
Wagner’s forces were within four hours of Moscow when the dramatic turnaround news came. The events had sparked panic in the capital with residents told not to journey around the city.
Earlier on Saturday, Vladimir Putin’s whereabouts were thrown into question after an aircraft belonging to the presidency was spotted flying from Moscow to St Petersburg. His spokesperson, Dmitry Peskov, denied Mr Putin had fled.
Source: Independent
