Following a brief rebellion led by Yevgeny Prigozhin, the head of the Wagner private military company, Russian President Vladimir Putin held a three-hour meeting with him at the Kremlin on June 29, according to Dmitry Peskov, the Kremlin spokesman. The meeting also included commanders from Prigozhin’s military company, which has fought alongside Russian troops in Ukraine. Prigozhin’s feud with Russia’s top military officials reached its peak on June 24 when he led his fighters into Russia in an armed mutiny. The rebellion ended after a deal was struck for Prigozhin to be exiled to Belarus.
The confirmation of a face-to-face meeting between Putin and Prigozhin, despite Putin’s previous condemnation of him as a traitor, adds further uncertainty to the fate of the mercenary leader. Since the failed mutiny, Prigozhin’s whereabouts have been unknown, and his actions have significantly weakened Putin’s authority.
During the meeting on June 29, Putin provided an evaluation of Wagner’s activities in Ukraine and discussed the events of June 24. The president also listened to the commanders’ explanations and offered options for their future employment and continued combat use, as stated by Peskov.
Peskov mentioned that the commanders presented their version of the events, emphasizing their loyalty to the state and their readiness to fight for their homeland. The meeting involved a total of 35 participants, including Wagner commanders and the company’s leadership, including Prigozhin himself.
In another development, Russia’s Defense Ministry released a video featuring General Valery Gerasimov, the military chief, marking his first appearance since the attempted rebellion that aimed to remove him. During the revolt, Prigozhin criticized Gerasimov, who holds the position of chief of the general staff of the Russian armed forces, as well as Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, accusing them of failing to supply ammunition to his fighters in Ukraine.
These recent updates seem to indicate Moscow’s efforts to regain control of the narrative following a turbulent period. In March, the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for President Putin, holding him personally responsible for war crimes related to child abductions in Ukraine. Investigations are also ongoing in Ukraine, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Poland, with assistance from the International Center for the Prosecution of the Crime of Aggression against Ukraine, based in The Hague.
According to a summary from the Ukrainian presidential office, Russian aerial assaults continued across Ukraine between Sunday and Monday. The attacks targeted residential areas in six cities and villages in the Donetsk region, resulting in injuries to one person. The Russian army also attacked residential areas in Kherson, the regional capital, causing injury to a 66-year-old woman, as reported by the presidential office.
{Matzav.com}
