Wagner Group, Russia

Moscow— Russian President Vladimir Putin admits that he allowed the Wagner Group uprising to continue for that long.

He claimed it was to avoid bloodshed and civil war.

"From the start of events, steps were taken on my direct instructions to avoid serious bloodshed," Putin said in his first comments Monday after the Wagner Group uprising.

He explained that time was needed, among other things, to give those who had made mistakes a chance to come to their senses.

They are expected to realize that such actions are firmly rejected by society.

"The adventures they were involved in had tragic and damaging consequences for Russia and our country," he said.

Putin did not name the head of the Wagner Group, Yevgeny Prigozhin, in his comments.

It was said earlier that Prigozhin asked Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov to come to Rostov to talk to him.

Prigozhin also called for the two to be dismissed.

Putin did not mention personnel changes in the composition of the Ministry of Defense.

However, at around 11:00 p.m. Moscow time, Putin appeared on television to address a meeting of the heads of the Ministry of Security, including Shoigu.

Putin also thanked Wagner fighters and commanders who quit the uprising to avoid "fraternal bloodshed."

He even said most of Wagner's members were patriots.

"Those who decide not to sign a contract with the army under the orders of the Ministry of Defense can move to Belarus or return to their families," Putin said.

Putin said all sections of society have taken a firm and unambiguous position in support of the constitutional order.

"All people are united by the main thing: responsibility for the fate of the fatherland," he said.

We Don't Want to Overthrow The Government

Russian mercenary leader Yevgeny Prigozhin said Monday, June 26, 2023, that the one-day uprising by forces of the Wagner Group was intended not to overthrow the Russian government but to protest against what he said was an ineffective act of war in Ukraine.

In his first public comments since ending the uprising on Saturday night, Prigozhin repeated his claim that Wagner was the most effective fighting force in Russia "and indeed the world", and that it embarrassed the units Moscow had sent to Ukraine on February 24, 2023.

He said the way they captured the city of Rostov-on-Don in southern Russia without bloodshed and sent armed convoys 200 kilometers from Moscow was testament to the effectiveness of his fighters.

"We showed a master class, as it should be, on February 24, 2022.

We have no goal of overthrowing the existing regime and the lawfully elected government," he said in an 11-minute audio message released on the messaging app Telegram.

Prigozhin renewed accusations, so far unsupported by evidence, that the Russian military had attacked the Wagner camp with missiles and then helicopters, killing around 1,000 of its people, and said this had been the direct trigger of what he called the "march for justice".

Avoiding Bloodshed

Wagner halted his advance towards Moscow the moment they realized they had to face waiting Russian troops and that blood would surely be shed, he said, repeating statements he made on Saturday.

Prigozhin, a former close ally of President Vladimir Putin, stressed that Wagner did not spill a single drop of blood on the ground during the convoy to the north.

But he lamented that his fighters had to kill Russian soldiers who attacked their convoy from helicopters.

He also once again complained about the military order that all volunteer units, including the Wagner Group, must sign before July 1 to place themselves under the control of the Russian Ministry of Defense.

Less than 2% of Wagner's men had signed up, added Prigozhin.

"The purpose of the convoy was to avoid destroying Wagner," he said.

In the recording, Prigozhin does not address any lingering questions about the deal brokered by Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko that ended the uprising.

The Kremlin said Saturday that the deal included dropping the criminal case against Prigozhin and his move to Belarus.

Prigozhin, who was last seen in public driving a sports utility vehicle from Rostov-on-Don on Saturday evening, did not say where he was when recording his statement.

Russia Investigates Possible Western Spy Agencies Involved In The Uprising

Russian intelligence services are investigating whether Western spy agencies played a role in the uprising that was quashed by Wagner Group mercenaries on Saturday, TASS news agency quoted Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov as saying on Monday, June 26, 2023.

In an interview with Russia's RT television, Lavrov said US Ambassador Lynne Tracy spoke to Russian representatives on Sunday and gave a "signal" that the United States was not involved in the insurgency but hoped that Russia's nuclear arsenal would remain safe, as reported by TASS.

He also quoted Tracy as saying that the uprising was an internal Russian affair.

Several Western leaders said the incident demonstrated the growing instability in Russia as a result of President Vladimir Putin's decision to send his armed forces to Ukraine early last year.

Asked whether there was any evidence that neither Ukrainian nor Western intelligence services were involved in the uprising, Lavrov replied:

"I work in a department that does not collect evidence of illegal acts. But we have such a structure, and I assure you, they understand this already."

Doubts over Wagner's future have raised questions about whether he will continue his operations in African countries such as Mali and the Central African Republic, where his forces have played a large role in long-running internal conflicts.

Since the war in Ukraine damaged Russia's relations and trade with the West, the Kremlin has also underscored its commitment to Africa.

Lavrov told RT that Mali and CAR both maintain official contacts with Moscow in addition to their relationship with the Wagner Group, adding: "Several hundred servicemen work in CAR as instructors; this work, of course, will continue".

Lavrov also said Ukraine's accusations that Russia was planning an attack involving the release of radiation at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant in southern Ukraine were "nonsense", TASS reported.