President Vladimir Putin has made a public address to the Russian people, following moves by the mercenary Wagner group to seize and occupy a Russian military headquarters in the town of Rostov-on-Don, on the country’s southern border with Ukraine.
The Wagner group is led by Yevgeny Prigozhin – a former associate of Putin whose one-time catering contracts with the Kremlin has earned him the description of “pastry chef.” He has called for rebellion against the Russian military machine, but denied he is attempting to orchestrate a political coup.
In Putin’s address, he called the group’s actions “a betrayal – a knife in the back of our people.”
And Prigozhin immediately responded, vowing to end “corruption, lies and bureaucracy” in Russia. His group’s move is believed to be a response to alleged recent shelling on the group by Russian forces.
In a previous public statement, he said: It is not a military coup, but a march for justice.”
An intelligence update from the UK Ministry of Defence called this “the most significant challenge to the Russian state in recent times” and described the feud as escalating into a military confrontation.
