The Russian president first revealed details of the meeting with Yevgeny Prigozhin and other commanders of the Wagner Group this Friday, five days after the mercenary group’s failed uprising, defending that “this private military company does not exist”. .
In an interview published in the Russian daily newspaper Kommersant, Vladimir Putin said he had given the Wagner Group fighters the opportunity to “come together in one place” and “continue to serve” Russia.
“They can all come together in one place and continue to serve [a Rússia]. Nothing would change for them. They would be led by the same person who was their real commander all along,” Putin said of the content of the proposal to the mercenaries at a meeting of 35 “Wagner commanders” held at the Kremlin on June 29.
According to the paper, the person the Russian leader was referring to was a commander of the Wagner Group known as Sedoi (gray hair).
Putin said that after hearing the proposal, many of those present at the meeting began to nod in agreement, but Prigozhin, the Russian president claimed, “didn’t see it that way” and replied that “the guys didn’t agree “.
Asked by Kommersat whether the Wagner Group will be retained as a combat unit after the failed mutiny, Putin replied: “There is no such private military company.”
“We don’t have a law on private military organizations and that’s why ‘Wagner’ doesn’t exist,” Putin said, adding that it was a legal issue related to the “effective legalization” of these paramilitary companies.
“This issue must be discussed in the State Duma [câmara baixa do Parlamento russo) e no Governo. Não é uma questão fácil”, admitiu.
Segundo o Kremlin, na reunião com os responsáveis do ‘Wagner’, Putin ouviu “as explicações dos comandantes” sobre o motim de cinco dias antes e ofereceu-lhes opções de emprego após a rebelião.
“Os próprios comandantes deram a sua versão do que aconteceu e sublinharam que eram apoiantes e soldados convictos do chefe de Estado e do comandante-chefe”, disse o porta-voz da presidência russa, Dmitry Peskov.
Os líderes do Grupo Wagner, acrescentou Peskov, “também disseram que estavam prontos para continuar a lutar pela Pátria [russa]”.
For its part, the US government believes the Wagner group is “not participating significantly” in the fighting in Ukraine, following last month’s uprising, in one of the biggest challenges to the Russian president’s power since taking office . current.
“At this stage, we do not see any significant involvement of Wagner Group forces in supporting combat operations in Ukraine,” said US Defense Department Press Secretary Pat Ryder.
The official stressed that Washington believes that “most of these forces are still in Russian-occupied areas of Ukraine, but are no longer contributing at an effective level with significant combat capability.”
“Obviously it’s something we’ll continue to pay attention to, but that’s how things are right now,” he concluded.
The leader of the private paramilitary group, Yevgeni Prigozhin, led an uprising on June 24, with his troops advancing on the capital Moscow, although an agreement was reached hours later that included the withdrawal of members of the Wagner Group with a view to his possible integration into the army, as well as the dropping of charges for those involved in the uprising.
In this regard, Putin said in statements to the Russian newspaper ‘Kommersant’ on Thursday that “at the legal level, the Wagner group does not exist”.
“It exists, but not on a legal level,” he said, before declaring that a “real legalization” of the private group’s status “is a matter to be discussed in the State Duma. [parlamento russo] and the government”.
“It’s not easy,” he acknowledged, adding that in this case “everything is easy and natural for Russian society.”
“The fighters of the Wagner Group fought with dignity, so it is regrettable that they are involved in these events,” he said.
Putin also indicated that at a meeting days after the uprising against Prigozhin, he had said that the members of the Wagner group could “come together in one place and continue their service, and nothing would change for them.”
“They will continue to be led by the same person who was their true commander all along,” he declared, apparently referring to his persona, as head of the armed forces, influencing his proposal for the integration of the members of the Wagner Group within the army to continue its duties in the context of the invasion of Ukraine.
Source: DN
