World

Rebellious Wagner leader says he’s taken key military sites in Russian city

June 24, 2023
Bharat Times English News

The owner of the Wagner private military contractor who called for an armed uprising aimed at ousting Russia’s defense minister confirmed Saturday morning that he and his troops have arrived in a major Russian city after crossing the border from Ukraine.

Yevgeny Prigozhin posted a video of himself in Rostov-on-Don, the Russian military headquarters overseeing the fighting in Ukraine. He claimed that the city had military facilities, including an airfield, under his army’s control. Other videos posted on social media showed military vehicles, including tanks, on the streets outside.

Prigozhin said early Saturday that his forces had entered Russia from Ukraine and reached Rostov, adding that he had encountered no resistance from young soldiers at checkpoints and that his forces were “not fighting against children”. “

“But we will destroy anyone who comes in our way,” he said in a series of angry videos and audio recordings posted on social media since late Friday. “We are moving forward and will move forward till the end.”

Russia’s military headquarters in Rostov-on-Don is a key military base for its offensive in Ukraine.

“We are inside the (army) headquarters, it’s 7:30 in the morning (0430 GMT),” Prigozhin said in a video posted on Telegram. “Military sites, including an airport in Rostov, are under control,” he added.

He added that the planes participating in the Ukraine attack were “departing as normal” from the airspace.

Prigozhin said, “We took control of (the aerodrome) so that the attack aircraft would not attack us, but Ukrainians.”

He called on Russians not to believe everything they are being told on state television.

He addressed the Russians, saying, “When they tell you that PMC Wagner interfered with the work and that’s why something collapsed at the front… Things at the front didn’t collapse because of this.”

“A large amount of territory has been lost. Three, four times more soldiers have been killed than what is said in the documents shown to the top (leadership).”

Prigozhin claimed that Russia’s Chief of General Staff Valery Gerasimov “ran away when he heard we were approaching the building.”

Authorities in Rostov have urged residents to stay at home.

Russia’s security services sought Prigozhin’s arrest in response to his declaration of an armed rebellion. Security was beefed up in Moscow and Rostov-on-Don, indicating how seriously the Kremlin took the threat. It was not immediately clear how he was able to enter the southern Russian city or how many soldiers were with him.

Prigozhin alleged that Gerasimov’s flagship flew warplanes to attack Wagner’s convoy, which was moving alongside normal vehicles. He also said his forces shot down a Russian military helicopter that had fired on a civilian convoy, but there was no independent confirmation of this.

He said that after a meeting in Rostov with Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu in which he decided to destroy Wagner, Wagner field camps in Ukraine were attacked with rockets, helicopter gunships and artillery fire on Gerasimov’s orders.

Prigozhin said he had 25,000 troops under his command and would punish Shoigu in an armed rebellion, and urged the army not to resist: “This is not a military coup, but a march of justice.”

Although the outcome of the confrontation was still unclear, it appeared that it could further hinder Moscow’s war effort as Kiev’s forces were probing Russian defenses in the early stages of a counter-offensive. The dispute, especially if Prigozhin prevails, could also have an impact on President Vladimir Putin and his ability to maintain a united front.

Wagner forces played a key role in Russia’s war in Ukraine, succeeding in capturing the town of Bakhmut where the bloodiest and longest fighting took place. But Prigozhin has criticized Russia’s military authorities, accusing them of incompetence and depriving its troops of arms and ammunition.

In this handout image taken from a video released by the Prigozhin Press Service on Friday, May 5, 2023, Yevgeny Prigozhin, head of the Wagner Group, stands in front of several bodies lying on the ground at an undisclosed location. (Prigozhin Press Service via AP)

On Friday, the National Anti-Terrorism Committee, which is part of the Federal Security Services, or FSB, accused Prigozhin of calling for an armed insurrection, which could carry a prison sentence of up to 20 years.

The FSB urged Wagner’s contract soldiers to arrest Prigozhin and refuse to obey his “criminal and treacherous orders”. It called his statements “stabbing Russian soldiers in the back” and said they tantamount to promoting armed conflict.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Putin was informed of the situation and “all necessary measures are being taken.” On Saturday morning he said Putin would address the nation “soon”.

Heavy military trucks and armored vehicles were seen in several parts of central Moscow early Saturday, and soldiers with assault rifles were deployed outside the main Defense Ministry building. The area around the Presidential Administration near Red Square was blocked off, disrupting traffic.

But despite the growing military presence, the city’s bars and restaurants were packed with customers. In a club near the FSB headquarters, people were dancing on the street near the entrance.

Moscow’s mayor announced Saturday morning that anti-terrorist measures are underway, including increased control of streets and a possible ban on mass gatherings.

Prigozhin, whose dispute with the Defense Ministry dates back years, refused to comply with a requirement that military contractors sign contracts with the ministry before 1 July. In a statement late Friday, he said he was ready to compromise but “they treacherously betrayed us.”

“Today they launched a rocket attack on our rear camps and a large number of our comrades were killed,” he said. The Ministry of Defense denied the attack on the Wagner camps.

“The evil being perpetrated by the country’s military leadership must be stopped,” he shouted.

Colonel General Sergei Surovikin, deputy commander of the Russian group fighting in Ukraine, urged Wagner forces to stop any moves against the army, saying it would play into the hands of Russia’s enemies, who are “waiting to see “The Deterioration of Our Domestic Political Situation.”