Minister Shoigu reappears after the Wagner Rebellion to visit Russian soldiers in Ukraine

Russian Minister of Defense Sergei Shoigu inspected the front command post of the Russian units fighting in Ukraine in what it is his first appearance after the armed rebellion of 24 hours was carried out on Saturday by the mercenaries of Wagner’s group.

During his visit to the Western Group of Forces, he “convinced himself of the high efficiency in the identification and destruction of military equipment and enemy deployment points in the tactical areas of the group’s zone of responsibility,” the Ministry of Defense announced. your Telegram channel.

“Shoigú paid special attention to the organization of comprehensive support for the units involved in the special military operation and the creation of conditions for the safe deployment of personnel,” said the military institution, which also released a video of the visit.

Although the exact date of Shoigu’s visit to the Russian background in Ukraine is unknown, the minister he has not appeared in public since last Fridaywhen he reported on the progress of the war to Russian President Vladimir Putin at the Security Council session.

During the entire rebellion organized by Wagner’s boss, Yevgeny Prigozhin — who justified his armed rebellion precisely because of the lack of leadership of Shoigu and the Chief of Staff, Valery Gerasimovin Ukraine, where he said they were responsible for the death of some “100,000 Russian soldiers” – the minister remained silent.

The rebellion was stopped after Prigozhin and his men captured the southern Russian city of Rostov-on-Don and in columns approached 200 kilometers from Moscow. The agreement reached with the mediation of the Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko means that the 62-year-old oligarch and his mercenaries they will not be prosecuted.

The Russian presidency emphasized Lukashenko’s mediation and emphasized that he and Prigozhin are They have known each other for about 20 years. Lukashenko himself and Russian President Vladimir Putin had a “long, honest, warm and very constructive” conversation that made the final deal possible, according to Kremlin spokesman Dimitri Peskov.

After the agreement, Prigozhin ordered members of the group to abandon positions taken during the advance, including a withdrawal from the center of Rostov-on-Don, in order to reduce tensions. Prigozhin will go into exile in Belarus, while fighters who did not directly participate in the rebellion will be able to sign contracts with the Russian Ministry of Defense and submit to Shoigu, just as he and Putin wanted. This, however, in practice implies the disappearance of the Wagner group as such, at least in Ukraine.

Even so, The Russian authorities keep the case of armed rebellion against Prigozhin open. According to information collected by Russian newspapers this Monday Kommersant, the case was not closed by legal means, which is why Prigožin is still being investigated by the Federal Security Service (FSB). For their part, sources referred to by Russian news agencies interface and TASS They confirmed that “the case is not closed” and that “the investigation continues.”

On the other hand, this Monday it was announced withdrawal of the anti-terrorist operation regime in Moscow and the region of the same name after the end of the crisis caused on Saturday by the rebellion of the Wagner group.

“The head of the Department of the Federal Security Service of Russia for the city of Moscow and the Moscow region decided to cancel the legal regime of the counter-terrorist operation in the territory of Moscow and the Moscow region from 9:00 a.m. (local time) on June 26, 2023,” reads the note published by the agency .

It was also pointed out that the decision was made “in the absence of threats to life, health, property and other legally protected interests of the population”, the Russian newspaper reports. Report.

The measure was introduced on Saturday, and the mayor of Moscow, Sergey Sobyanin, announced that this Monday will be considered a holiday and asked citizens to avoid traveling as much as possible in a “difficult” situation.