PRIGOZHIN'S REVOLT
Prigozhin, a former convict and long-time ally of Putin, leads a private army that includes thousands of former prisoners recruited from Russian jails.
His men took on the fiercest fighting of the 16-month Ukraine war, including the protracted battle for the eastern city of Bakhmut.
He railed for months against the regular army's top brass, accusing generals of incompetence and of withholding ammunition from his fighters. This month, he defied orders to sign a contract placing his troops under Defence Ministry command.
He launched the apparent mutiny on Friday after alleging that the military had killed many of his fighters in an air strike. The Defence Ministry denied it.
"There are 25,000 of us and we are going to figure out why chaos is happening in the country," he said, promising to destroy any checkpoints or air forces that got in Wagner's way. He later said his men had been involved in clashes with regular soldiers and had shot down a helicopter.
Anna Matveeva, senior visiting research fellow at King's College's Russia Institute, said Prigozhin was a popular figure whose men were well-equipped and trained, after doing the heavy lifting in Ukraine in recent months.
"They are a force to be reckoned with", said Matveeva, adding that Wagner's success or failure would depend on the allies it could find within Russia's security forces.
Army Lieutenant-General Vladimir Alekseyev issued a video appeal asking Prigozhin to reconsider.
"Only the president has the right to appoint the top leadership of the armed forces, and you are trying to encroach on his authority," he said.
https://news.google.com/rss/articles/CBMiYGh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LmNoYW5uZWxuZXdzYXNpYS5jb20vd29ybGQvd2FnbmVyLXJ1c3NpYW4tcmViZWxzLWFkdmFuY2UtdG93YXJkcy1tb3Njb3ctcHV0aW4tMzU4NDkwNtIBAA?oc=5
2023-06-24 14:55:00Z
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