Russian President Vladimir Putin has vowed to do "everything to protect the country" in the wake of reports that Wagner mercenary forces headed by Yevgeny Prigozhin were occupying military facilities in the southwestern Russian city of Rostov-on-Don and apparently attempting to advance toward Moscow.
Putin, addressing the nation on live television on June 24, described Wagner's actions as an "armed mutiny" and said that "decisive action" would be taken to stabilize the situation in southwestern Russia.
Putin said Prigozhin, who earlier announced a "march of justice" to topple the Russian military leadership, had "betrayed" Russia out of "personal ambition" and that Wagner mercenaries were blocking civilian and military governing bodies in Rostov-on-Don.
Putin vowed to punish all "traitors" involved in the Wagner action, which was reportedly expanding north through Russia's Voronezh region. The Russian president said the country "is engaged in its heaviest struggle for its future" and called for unity among the Russian people to counter what he said was a "stab in the back."
"It is a blow to Russia, to our people. And our actions to defend the Fatherland against such a threat will be harsh," Putin said. "All those who deliberately stepped on the path of betrayal, who prepared an armed insurrection, who took the path of blackmail and terrorist methods, will suffer inevitable punishment, will answer both to the law and to our people."
Following Putin's speech, Russian State Duma head Vyacheslav Volodin called on Wagner fighters to make "the right choice" and to follow Putin's lead.
"Wagner fighters must make the only right choice -- to be with their people, stay on the right side of the law, protect the security and future of our Homeland, and follow the orders of the supreme commander-in-chief," Volodin wrote. "Anything else is betrayal."
Prigozhin announced on Telegram early on June 24 that his forces had taken control of the Russian military headquarters in the city, as well as its military sites and airport.
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"We are inside the (military) headquarters. It is 7:30 a.m.," Prigozhin said in a video. "Military sites in Rostov, including an airport, are under control." Prigozhin added that aircraft participating in Russia's war against Ukraine were "leaving as normal" and that his forces had taken the airport "so that the attack aviation would not strike us, but strike Ukrainians."
Prigozhin said his forces crossed from Ukraine, where the private Wagner mercenary force has been heavily involved in fighting against Ukraine's military, into Russia and had faced no resistance from Russian conscripts it allegedly encountered.
Prigozhin said Wagner is not "fighting against children" but "will destroy anyone who stands in our way."
Videos posted on social media showed military vehicles, including tanks, on the streets of Rosto-on-Don and scenes of Wagner representatives allegedly meeting face-to-face with Russian military officials in the city.
The British Defense Ministry said in an intelligence update on June 24 that "further Wagner units are moving north through Voronezh Oblast, almost certainly aiming to get to Moscow," noting that "with very limited evidence of fighting between Wagner and Russian security forces" some Russian security forces had likely remained "passive" and were "acquiescing to Wagner."
Reuters news agency cited a Russian security source as saying on June 24 that Wagner fighters had taken control of military facilities in the city of Voronezh, located 500 kilometers south of Moscow. Reuters and RFE/RL were unable to independently confirm the claim.
IN PHOTOS: Armed men, reportedly from the Wagner mercenary group, have been photographed in the southern Russian city of Rostov-on-Don amid claims of a "mutiny" underway against Russia's Defense Ministry.
Wagner Fighters Seen In Key Russian City After Call For 'Rebellion'
Armed men, reportedly from the Wagner mercenary group, have been photographed in the southern Russian city of Rostov-on-Don amid claims of a "mutiny" under way against Russia's Defense Ministry.
Voronezh region head Aleksandr Gusev dismissed reports of " alleged movement of columns of military equipment on the territory of the Voronezh region" as "false information."
Rostov-on-Don is a main logistical base for Russia's war operations in Ukraine. Prigozhin said on June 24 that his forces' presence there would not impede the Russian war effort in Ukraine, where Ukrainian forces recently launched a major counteroffensive to retake Ukrainian territory occupied by Russia.
The development comes after Prigozhin on June 22 suggested he had sent an armed convoy on a "march of justice" toward Moscow in an unlikely effort to topple the Russian military leadership.
Prigozhin said he was backed by 25,000 fighters, including Russian servicemen, and that their aim was to take down the leadership of the Russian Defense Ministry, including Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and the chief of staff of the Russian armed forces, Valery Gerasimov.
Local officials in Russia said on June 24 that a military convoy was on the main highway linking the southwestern part of Russia bordering Ukraine to Moscow, and warned residents to avoid it.
Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said he had put "anti-terror measures" into effect in the Russian capital, including increased traffic checks and restrictions on large events.
In St. Petersburg, the headquarters of the Wagner group had been cordoned off, according to TASS.
Mykhaylo Podolyak, a senior adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, described Prigozhin's actions as a "counterterrorist" operation that clearly exposed the simmering feud among Russia's leadership.
"The split between the elites is too obvious. Agreeing and pretending that everything is settled won't work," Podolyak wrote in a tweet on June 24. "Someone must definitely lose: either Prigozhin...or the collective 'anti-Prigozhin.'"
"Everything is just beginning in Russia," Podolyak added.
Late on June 23, the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) launched a criminal probe after what it said was a "call for an armed mutiny" by Prigozhin, while a top Russian general called on Wagner forces to give up their opposition to the Russian military.
"In connection with these statements, Russia's FSB has opened a criminal case," the National Anti-Terror Committee said on June 23 in a statement carried by Russian news agencies. "We demand that unlawful actions be stopped immediately," the statement said.
General Sergei Surovikin, a deputy to Gerasimov, posted a video message on Telegram urging Wagner group fighters to return to their bases.
"I urge you to stop," he said. "The enemy is just waiting for the internal political situation to worsen in our country."
Prigozhin earlier accused the Russian Defense Ministry of launching rocket attacks on the rear camps of his forces in Ukraine using artillery and attack helicopters.
In a series of audio messages on his Telegram channel, Prigozhin said there were many victims in the ranks of his mercenary group but did not specify exactly where the strikes took place.
"Those who destroyed our lads, who destroyed the lives of many tens of thousands of Russian soldiers, will be punished. I ask that no one offer resistance," Prigozhin said. The Wagner chief, once seen as a close ally to Putin, added that it was “not a military coup” rather a “march of justice."
Prigozhin, who has openly challenged Russia's military leadership in recent weeks amid heavy fighting in Ukraine, also said that Russia's all-out invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 was justified based on "lies."
"The war was needed...so that Shoigu could become a marshal...so that he could get a second 'Hero' [of Russia] medal," Prigozhin said. "The war wasn't needed to demilitarize or 'deNazify' Ukraine," Prigozhin said, referring to Putin's oft-stated reasons for launching the war against Kyiv.
The Defense Ministry responded by saying that the statements "do not correspond to reality," calling them a "provocation."
The Defense Ministry responded by saying that the statements "do not correspond to reality," calling them a "provocation."
With reporting by RFE/RL's Russian Service, AP, AFP, dpa, Reuters, Interfax, and TASS
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2023-06-24 09:36:02Z
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