Wagner mercenaries revolt against the Kremlin for now – the night update without pictures Prigozhin against Putin – everything that has happened so far

The uprising seems to be over

The armed revolt of Russian mercenaries against their own state leadership in the middle of the war in Ukraine appears to have been short-lived. Just hours after the advance on Moscow began, mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin on Saturday night ordered his notorious private army to retreat. Soon after, the mercenaries gave up their positions in southern Russia. Prigozhin himself will go unmolested to neighboring Belarus, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Saturday, according to the Russian news agency Interfax. As a guarantee of the free admission, the former confidant of Kremlin boss Vladimir Putin has “the president’s word”.

Although Putin had announced that the insurgents would be punished that morning, the Kremlin made different statements in the evening. The fighters of the Wagner troop should not be prosecuted for their merits at the front in Ukraine, as Peskov assured. On the contrary, some mercenaries are offered a contract to serve in the Russian armed forces.

The events in brief:

And the current events always at a glance:

Lukashenko as a mediator

According to his own statements, the Belarusian ruler Alexander Lukashenko persuaded Prigozhin to abandon his rebellion. Lukashenko offered to become a mediator because he had personally known Prigozhin for about 20 years, Peskov said. Prigozhin himself did not directly comment on this. It was not clear if and when he wanted to leave South Russia for Belarus.

Shortly before, the mercenary chief had announced that he would prevent his units from advancing on the Russian capital Moscow. “Our columns are turning and moving in the opposite direction to the camps,” he said in a voice message published by his press service on Telegram. So far “not a drop of blood from our fighters” has been shed. “This is the time when blood can be shed.” That’s why it’s time to flip the columns.

At first it was not clear whether any other concessions besides impunity were being made or at least promised to Prigozhin to prevent his troops from advancing on Moscow. He was long regarded as a staunch companion of Putin, an untouchable figure in the Russian power structure, until the Kremlin chief called him a “traitor” on Saturday morning – thus publicly dropping him.

Mercenaries withdraw from Rostov

The Wagner troops gave up their positions in the southern Russian city of Rostov-on-Don, which they had held until early Sunday morning (local time). To the applause of the civilian population, the first vehicles with mercenaries left the headquarters of the Russian Military Command South, which they had occupied only hours before, before tanks and combat vehicles later also left the city center.

According to official information, all roadblocks on access roads around Moscow were lifted early Sunday morning. However, the city government continued to adhere to the work-free Monday originally declared by Mayor Sergei Sobyanin for security reasons.

The power struggle between Prigozhin and the Russian army command, which had been smoldering for months, escalated on Saturday night. The 62-year-old accused Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu of ordering an attack on a Wagner military camp, accepting the deaths of a “large number” of fighters. The notorious mercenary unit fought alongside regular Russian troops in Putin’s war of aggression against Ukraine, playing a particularly important role in the capture of the city of Bakhmut in the Donetsk region.

However, there has been disagreement over powers and ammunition stocks for months. Prigozhin repeatedly rebuffed the army command with open criticism and malice – an unprecedented occurrence in Putin’s Russia, where voices critical of the government have been systematically silenced. Yet Putin let him do that for a long time.

After the alleged attack on the Wagner camp, which the Moscow Defense Ministry immediately denied, Prigozhin announced a “march of justice” to punish those responsible. On Saturday, his troops occupied military facilities in Rostov-on-Don for the first time. It was later revealed that other units had marched towards Moscow. According to Prigozhin, the heads of his units were recently only about 200 kilometers from the Russian capital.

According to the Russian leadership, the course of the war against Ukraine has not been affected by the uprising in Prigozhin. Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov said he was also unaware of any change in the president’s attitude towards Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu. Prigozhin accused minister and chief of staff Valeri Gerasimov of incompetence and blamed them for the many setbacks on the battlefield.

From Ukraine, Russian soldiers reported heavy fighting in the Kupyansk region in the east of the country. Russian artillery repeatedly prevented troop movements into Ukraine on Saturday, it was said, while attack helicopters fired missiles that inflicted losses on Ukrainian units. The information could not be independently verified.

Federal Minister of Foreign Affairs Annalena Baerbock shortened her two-day trip to South Africa because of the power struggle in Russia. The minister had “postponed her planned departure to South Africa by a day to attend a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Luxembourg on Monday morning given the latest developments in Russia,” a spokesperson for the Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on Saturday evening. leave. in Berlin. Baerbock now wants to leave for South Africa on Monday afternoon.

What will be important on Sunday

Is the Wagner boss already in Belarus, will he travel to Minsk later – or will Progoschin resist his banishment in exile? Details on the reasons that led to the rapid de-escalation of the mercenary uprising are also expected on Sunday. (con/sda/dpa)