The fate of Yevgeny Prigozhin, the leader of the Wagner Group, remains uncertain following his armed mutiny on June 24.
Despite the deaths of soldiers and the attempted uprising against military leaders, it is unclear if anyone will face charges for these events. Questions surround Prigozhin’s whereabouts, with no official comments from the Kremlin regarding his current location.
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The possibility of his return to Belarus, Russia’s closest ally, under a deal with the Kremlin to resolve the rebellion, remains uncertain. Sources indicate that he is currently in St. Petersburg, enjoying political immunity while staying there after his apparent “exile” in Belarus.
Belarusian President Lukashenko has now declared that Putin will not pursue Prigozhin and assured his safety. This statement has been seen as undermining Putin’s authority, according to some analysts.
Concurrently, a campaign has been launched to portray Prigozhin as driven by greed, with only limited investigations into possible mishandling of state funds amounting to billions of dollars.
Historically, the Kremlin had never acknowledged funding the Wagner Group, as private mercenary groups are technically illegal in Russia.
However, President Putin recently revealed that the state had paid Wagner nearly $1 billion in just one year, while Prigozhin’s other company received a similar amount from government contracts. Putin raised concerns about the possible embezzlement of these funds.
The situation surrounding Prigozhin, who remains unpunished despite Putin’s categorization of his revolt as treason, underscores the gradual erosion of the legal system in Russia, as noted by St. Petersburg municipal council member Nikita Yuferev.
President Alexander Lukashenko of Belarus stated on Thursday that Prigozhin is “absolutely free” and that Putin would not seek to eliminate him, defending Putin as neither “malevolent” nor “vindictive.”
However, Dr. Yuri Felshtinsky, a US-based author and Russian affairs expert, suggests that Lukashenko’s comment undermines Putin’s authority.
Andrei Kolesnikov, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Russia Eurasia Centre, wrote about the mutiny in a column, concluding that “the fabric of the state is disintegrating.”
Following Putin’s indication that the government would investigate financial irregularities involving Prigozhin’s companies, state TV picked up on this cue.
Russian media, including the popular state TV channel Russia 1, aired videos showing searches at Prigozhin’s offices in St. Petersburg and his purported opulent mansion with a helipad and indoor swimming pool. The broadcasts featured a van loaded with cash, gold bars, wigs, and weapons found on the estate.
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Russia 1 programs also alleged that Prigozhin’s adult children had acquired significant wealth through him and portrayed the searches as part of an ongoing investigation, highlighting the contrast between his lifestyle and his anti-elite image.
An anchor on Russia 1 pondered, “So it turns out, Yevgeny Prigozhin didn’t have enough and wanted more?”
The post Lukashenko Undermines Putin, Asserting That Russian Leader ‘Will Not Eliminate Wagner Chief’ appeared first on SurgeZirc UK.
