At the Kremlin on Tuesday, President Vladimir Putin addressed the issue of Yevgeny Prigozhin’s catering company, which is associated with the Wagner mercenary group. Putin stated that an investigation would be conducted into the firm’s finances following Prigozhin’s mutiny. According to Putin, Wagner and its founder received nearly $2 billion in funding from Russia within the past year.
Initially, Putin had expressed his determination to quell the mutiny, drawing parallels to the turbulent times that led to the revolutions of 1917 and subsequent civil war. However, a deal was later struck allowing Prigozhin and some of his fighters to travel to Belarus.
Addressing soldiers from the Russian army, Putin acknowledged his respect for Wagner’s fighters but emphasized that the group had been entirely funded through the state budget. He disclosed that between May 2022 and May 2023, Wagner received 86 billion rubles ($1 billion) from the defense ministry. Furthermore, Prigozhin’s Concord catering company generated an additional 80 billion rubles through state contracts to supply food to the Russian army.
While expressing his hope that no misappropriation had occurred, Putin asserted that a thorough investigation would be conducted to ensure accountability.
“I do hope that, as part of this work, no one stole anything, or, let’s say, stole less, but we will, of course, investigate all of this,” Putin said, according to Reuters.
Prigozhin, whom Putin did not mention by name, did not offer an immediate response to Putin’s remarks.
Earlier this year, Prigozhin had claimed that he had always financed Wagner but sought additional funding following the outbreak of war in Ukraine. On Monday, he stated that his intention was not to overthrow the Russian state but rather to settle disputes with the defense ministry, emphasizing his patriotism.
{Matzav.com}
