President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia held a prolonged assembly with Yevgeny V. Prigozhin and commanders of his Wagner non-public army firm simply days after they’d launched a mutiny that put the nation on the point of a civil battle, the Kremlin disclosed on Monday.
Mr. Putin had denounced the leaders of the June 23-24 insurrection as traitors, so the startling revelation that he performed host to them on June 29 means that for all his bluster, he noticed a continued use for the mercenary group and its boss. The assembly is the primary recognized contact between the 2 males because the rebellion, which posed probably the most dramatic problem to Mr. Putin’s authority in his 23 years in energy.
News of the assembly added to the thriller of what is going to develop into of Mr. Prigozhin and his power after the riot. It stays unclear why a warlord along with his personal non-public military, who tried to depose the Russian army management by power, has been allowed to stay within the nation, apparently unhindered, allegedly even returning to his hometown, St. Petersburg, to select up his confiscated weapons.
Mr. Putin invited 35 folks to the three-hour assembly, together with Mr. Prigozhin and all of Wagner’s prime commanders, and gave his evaluation of the corporate’s efforts on the battlefield in Ukraine, in addition to its actions within the mutiny, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitri S. Peskov mentioned.
The Wagner fighters additionally supplied their rationalization of what had transpired, in keeping with Mr. Peskov, who steered the gathering was an opportunity to clear the air and set a course going ahead. “Putin heard out the commanders and proposed further employment options and further combat options,” he mentioned.
The Wagner fighters pledged their loyalty to the Russian chief in the course of the assembly, the Kremlin spokesman added.
“They emphasized that they are staunch supporters and soldiers of the head of state and commander in chief — and also said they are prepared to fight for the country going forward,” he mentioned.
The image of Mr. Prigozhin and his prime lieutenants sitting peacefully at a desk with the Russian chief — simply days after Mr. Putin had vowed to crush their insurrection — contrasted with the broadly held picture of Mr. Putin as a ruthless authoritarian, adept at squelching threats to his rule.
It appeared to replicate a calculation by the Kremlin to keep away from totally eradicating an skilled preventing power with a well-liked following in the midst of a expensive battle. The Russian president, some analysts say, can also view the riot as little greater than a factional feud that received uncontrolled. Mr. Prigozhin has mentioned he got down to topple the Russian army management — to not problem Mr. Putin’s rule.
“I would not assume that Prigozhin is back into Putin’s best graces forever and nothing has happened. Something has happened. Conclusions have been drawn for now,” mentioned Alexander Gabuev, director of the Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center. “But just crushing them and crushing him at this point is for some reason disadvantageous, compared to keeping him afloat.”
Andrei Soldatov, a Russian safety providers knowledgeable, mentioned Mr. Putin’s robust discuss treachery had been aimed primarily on the Russian army, to stop any commanders from siding with the mutiny. Afterward, he mentioned, the president and Mr. Prigozhin “just made another deal.”
“We don’t know the terms,” Mr. Soldatov added. “But the understanding is they know each other, know what to expect from each other, thus they can still cooperate or work together.”
But the revolt put Mr. Putin’s vulnerability on world show, and the admission that he chatted with Wagner leaders dangers making him look weaker nonetheless.
Tatiana Stanovaya, founding father of the R.Politik political consultancy, mentioned the Kremlin probably determined to reveal the assembly to calm a Russian elite that is still confused about what transpired — about whether or not Mr. Prigozhin is a “traitor or our guy.”
“It’s a signal to the elite that Prigozhin remains systemic,” Ms. Stanovaya mentioned. “Yes, he made a mistake, yes, this is a very serious crime. But due to the specifics of the situation, which is really very unique, Putin will give him the opportunity to survive.”
The mutiny uncovered Mr. Putin’s incapacity or unwillingness to cope with an influence battle that for months had raged within the open, with Mr. Prigozhin commonly launching profanity-laced invective at Russia’s army management on Telegram. Ms. Stanovaya, who can be a senior fellow on the Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center, mentioned she suspected Mr. Putin felt a minimum of partly liable for not higher managing the escalating feud.
“So for Putin, Prigozhin is of course a traitor, but he’s his traitor,” Ms. Stanovaya mentioned. “That is, a person who made a mistake out of stupidity, rather than out of malice.”
The Kremlin beforehand had been deflecting questions on Mr. Prigozhin’s standing and whereabouts.
On the day Mr. Putin and Mr. Prigozhin met, Mr. Peskov informed reporters he didn’t know the place Mr. Prigozhin was. The following week, Mr. Peskov mentioned the Kremlin had neither the “ability nor the desire” to trace his actions.
But on Friday, the French newspaper Libération reported that Mr. Putin had met with Mr. Prigozhin and his Wagner commanders on the Kremlin to “negotiate the fate of his empire,” which embody a spread of business ventures.
On Monday, Mr. Peskov confirmed that the assembly came about, however added, “The details of it are unknown.”
Mr. Prigozhin’s forces have been vital to Russia’s battle in opposition to Ukraine, however final month the federal government ordered Wagner troops preventing there to affix the common army. Facing a serious lack of energy, Mr. Prigozhin railed loudly in opposition to the transfer, to no avail.
His fighters seized the southern Russian metropolis of Rostov-on-Don, and an vital Russian army headquarters there, and staged a drive on Moscow that stopped inside 125 miles of the capital.
Mr. Putin warned in a nationwide tackle in opposition to a descent into civil battle, and mentioned the harshest punishment awaited those that had “consciously chosen the path of betrayal.”
But the punishment didn’t come.
Hours later, the Kremlin introduced a deal, allegedly brokered by the Belarusian chief Aleksandr G. Lukashenko: Mr. Prigozhin would stand down, keep away from prosecution and depart for Belarus. Wagner fighters who had participated within the mutiny would additionally keep away from punishment; those that didn’t take part could be given the possibility to signal Russian army contracts.
Mr. Prigozhin and his males packed up and retreated.
The settlement outraged hard-line Russian commentators, who famous that the insurrectionists had shot down Russian plane, killing army personnel.
In the times since, Mr. Prigozhin’s standing has been a thriller. He hasn’t made any public appearances. His firm has stopped posting responses to questions from the media. The man who stepped out of the shadows final yr to make a public title for himself has gone quiet, a minimum of quickly.
Perhaps the most important shock of all is that on the planet of Mr. Putin, the place these inflicting political issues have commonly ended up imprisoned or killed, Mr. Prigozhin shouldn’t be solely nonetheless alive however seems to be shifting freely round Russia.
Mr. Lukashenko mentioned days after the mutiny that Mr. Prigozhin had arrived in Belarus, however it isn’t clear if that was true. Last week the Belarusian chief mentioned Mr. Prigozhin was in Russia — which U.S. officers confirmed — and was a “free man.”
On Thursday, Mr. Prigozhin was noticed arriving in a BMW 7-series sedan on the St. Petersburg headquarters of the F.S.B., a successor to the Soviet-era Ok.G.B., the place he collected weapons that the Russian authorities had seized from his nation home in the course of the mutiny, the impartial news outlet Fontanka reported. Days earlier, Fontanka mentioned, considered one of his drivers had arrived to gather billions of rubles, lots of of 1000’s of {dollars} and several other gold bars that Russian authorities had seized in autos parked at St. Petersburg resorts related to him.
Mr. Lukashenko mentioned simply after the rebellion that Wagner fighters, like their chief, could be welcome in Belarus. Last week, his authorities mentioned none had come, however that which may change.
A distinguished Wagner commander, Anton Yelizarov, who goes by the nom de guerre Lotos, gave an interview to a Russian battle blogger on Friday, from southern Russia, during which he mentioned all Wagner fighters had been launched on break till early August — and steered he was spending time along with his household by the ocean.
In the interview, posted on Telegram, Mr. Yelizarov mentioned Wagner would stand apart in Ukraine in the intervening time and had loads of work to do to arrange its “exit” to Belarus.
“There’s no clash with law enforcement agencies, the president guaranteed us that,” Mr. Yelizarov mentioned. “As for society and normal people, you can see for yourself: girls are walking around with patches that they coaxed off our guys, most likely for kisses. Boys are wearing T-shirts and hats with our logos. Little kids are playing war games, with the Ukrainians as the Germans and Wagner PMC fighters as the Red Army.”
He didn’t exclude the potential of the mercenary group turning into concerned once more in Ukraine. “Our armored train is in reserve, and we stand ready to come to the aid of our Motherland and our nation when the Russian people call us,” he mentioned.
Source: www.nytimes.com