By The Associated Press
The newest on the armed revolt declared by Russian mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin:
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Security in numerous Russian areas was tightened as authorities sought to thwart an armed revolt spearheaded by mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin.
There was tighter safety significantly in areas between the southern metropolis of Rostov-on-Don, the place Prigozhin’s Wagner group appeared to manage navy headquarters, and Moscow.
The governor of the Lipetsk area requested residents to remain at residence and chorus from touring. Governor Igor Artamonov mentioned on Telegram that Wagner had entered the province however “the situation is under control.”
In the neighboring Tambov area, mass occasions had been canceled Saturday.
Those occasions included highschool commencement events. Russia’s Education Ministry mentioned such events had been being postponed till July 1 in Moscow, the area across the capital and “a number of other regions where additional anti-terrorist measures have been introduced.”
In the capital, site visitors on the Moscow River was suspended. Police officers in bulletproof vests and with machine weapons had been seen close to the doorway of the key freeway that hyperlinks Moscow with Voronezh and Rostov–on-Don.
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KEY DEVELOPMENTS:
Putin calls armed revolt by mercenary chief a betrayal and vows to punish its leaders
Prigozhin, the mercenary chief urging an rebellion, has lengthy ties to Putin
Follow AP’s protection of the conflict in Ukraine: https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine
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Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s workplace says he advised Russian President Vladimir Putin on Saturday that Turkey was prepared to assist resolve the stand-off in Russia with the mercenary Wagner group.
The Turkish presidency tweeted that, in a telephone name with Putin, Erdogan “underlined the importance of acting with common sense” and mentioned Ankara might assist resolve occasions as quickly as attainable. It didn’t specify how Turkey might assist.
Turkey has retained shut ties with each Moscow and Kyiv in the course of the conflict
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The governor of Russia’s Lipetsk province mentioned Saturday that the Wagner mercenary group has entered the area.
The Lipetsk area is about 360 kilometers (225 miles) south of Moscow and far nearer to the capital than Rostov-on-Don, the place Wagner forces appeared in the course of the evening.
Authorities “are taking all necessary measures to ensure the safety of the population. The situation is under control,” governor Igor Artamonov mentioned on Telegram. He didn’t give particulars concerning the Wagner presence.
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Ukraine’s deputy protection minister says the “political crisis” in Russia supplies Kyiv with a “window of opportunity.”
Hanna Maliar wrote on Telegram Saturday that Moscow’s “erroneous decision” to start out a conflict in Ukraine had caused “the inevitable degradation of the Russian state.”
The revolt by mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin comes as Kyiv’s forces have been probing Russian defenses within the preliminary phases of a counteroffensive.
Speaking in Kyiv, Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba mentioned that “a coup is taking place in Russia, led by Prigozhin and his Wagner troops. Any coup, any problem that emerges in enemy’s rear aligns with our interest.”
He added that “it is early to estimate consequences.”
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Foreign ministers from the Group of Seven main industrial powers conferred Saturday on the state of affairs in Russia after mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin launched an armed revolt.
The U.S. State Department and German Foreign Ministry gave few particulars of the dialogue, which additionally included the European Union’s international coverage chief.
The State Department mentioned Secretary of State Antony Blinken “reiterated that support by the United States for Ukraine will not change.” It mentioned that the U.S. “will stay in close coordination” with allies and companions because the state of affairs develops.
The G7 includes the United States, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Canada and the U.Ok.
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The Kremlin says Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke to a number of international leaders on Saturday following the armed revolt by mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin.
Spokesman Dmitry Peskov mentioned Putin spoke on the telephone with the leaders of Belarus, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan and “informed his counterparts of the situation.”
Putin additionally spoke with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. A Kremlin assertion mentioned the Russian chief knowledgeable Erdogan “about the situation in the country related to an attempted armed rebellion,” and the Turkish president “expressed full support for the steps of the Russian leadership.”
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Mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin claims that his troops entered the southern Russian metropolis of Rostov-on-Don with out a single shot and says that nobody was killed throughout what he calls a “march of justice.”
Prigozhin mentioned in a brand new audio assertion on Saturday that “we didn’t touch a single conscript, we didn’t kill a single person on our way.” He added that the Russian air power focused his troops, however they nonetheless managed to grab navy headquarters in Rostov “without a single gunshot.”
His claims couldn’t be independently verified. The Russian authorities haven’t reported any casualties up to now, both.
Shortly earlier than Prigozhin launched his assertion, an explosion was heard close to the navy headquarters his Wagner group apparently controls in Rostov. It was not instantly clear the place the explosion occurred, how huge it was and whether or not it prompted any injury.
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Estonia and Latvian officers say their international locations have stepped up border safety following an armed revolt in neighboring Russia by mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin.
Both nations are NATO members and robust backers of Ukraine, and have tense relations with Russia. Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas wrote on Twitter that Estonia is “closely following” developments and exchanging data with allies.
She wrote: “I can assure that there is no direct threat to our country. Border security has been strengthened.”
Foreign Minister Edgars Rinkevics of neighboring Latvia wrote in an English-language Twitter publish that his nation’s border safety additionally has been strengthened and “visa or border entry from Russians leaving Russia due to current events won’t be considered.”
He mentioned there may be “no direct threat to Latvia at this time.”
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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zekenskyy says it’s clear that Russia is affected by “full-scale weakness” after mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin launched an armed revolt.
Zelenskyy mentioned in feedback posted on his Telegram channel Saturday that “anyone who chooses the path of evil destroys himself.”
He mentioned that “for a long time, Russia used propaganda to mask its weakness and the stupidity of its government. And now there is so much chaos that no lie can hide it.”
“Russia’s weakness is obvious. Full-scale weakness,” Zelenskyy mentioned. “And the longer Russia keeps its troops and mercenaries on our land, the more chaos, pain and problems it will have for itself later. This is also obvious.”
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Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni says she is monitoring occasions in Russia they usually underline “how the aggression against Ukraine is provoking instability within the Russian Federation.”
Meloni mentioned in feedback to reporters in Austria later Saturday that the state of affairs in Russia is tough to judge.
She mentioned that “it is a very chaotic situation inside the Russian Federation, that is out of tune with certain propaganda we have seen in recent months.”
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Russian mercenary chief Yevgheny Prigozhin on Saturday denied allegations by President Vladimir Putin that he’s betraying his nation and referred to as his fighters patriots.
In an audio message on his Telegram channel, Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin mentioned: “Regarding the betrayal of the motherland, the president was deeply mistaken. We are patriots of our homeland.”
He mentioned his fighters wouldn’t flip themselves in on the request of Putin, as “we do not want the country to live on in corruption, deceit and bureaucracy.”
Putin mentioned in televised handle to the nation earlier Saturday that “all those who prepared the rebellion will suffer inevitable punishment.” He mentioned that “the armed forces and other government agencies have received the necessary orders.”
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Officials throughout Russia have rallied behind President Vladimir Putin, publicly reiterating their allegiance to the Kremlin and urging mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin to again down.
Vyacheslav Volodin, the speaker of Russia’s decrease home of parliament, the State Duma, mentioned that lawmakers “stand for the consolidation of forces” and help Putin after his handle to the nation on Saturday.
He added that fighters from Prigozhin’s Wagner group “must make the only right choice: to be with their people, on the side of the law, to protect the security and future of the Motherland, to follow the orders of the Commander-in-Chief.”
Maria Zakharova, Russia’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson, mentioned in a Telegram publish that “we have one commander in chief. Not two, not three. One. And he urged everyone to unite.”
Ramzan Kadyrov, the chief of the Chechnya who up to now has sided with Prigozhin in his criticism of the navy management, additionally expressed his full help for “every word of” Putin. He mentioned that “the mutiny needs to be suppressed.”
So far, no Russian official has spoken out in help of Prigozhin.
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Unexpected help for mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin’s endeavor got here from exiled tycoon turned opposition chief Mikhail Khodorkovsky.
Khodorkovsky mentioned in a Facebook publish that Prigozhin’s revolt is “the strongest blow to (Russian President Vladimir) Putin’s reputation,” and that serving to him get to Moscow could be “helping our country.”
He mentioned Prigozhin had “repeated word for word what we, the anti-war opposition, have been saying since the beginning of the war” — that the “purpose of the war is theft” and nobody believes within the official cause for the conflict in Ukraine.
Khodorkovsky wrote: “Help the devil, if he decides to oppose this regime! Help because there is no crime worse than unleashing an aggressive war. If one criminal is ready to interfere with another … we need to help, and then, if necessary, we will tackle them.”
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A Ukrainian presidential adviser says that the beginning of his nation’s counteroffensive has “finally destabilized the Russian elites” and intensified inner splits.
Mykhailo Podolyak mentioned Saturday that occasions are “developing according to the scenario that we have been talking about for the past year,” Ukraine’s Interfax information company reported.
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Saturday vowed to defend the nation from an armed revolt declared by mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin, which Putin referred to as a “stab in the back” to Russia.
The revolt comes as Kyiv’s forces have been probing Russian defenses within the preliminary phases of a counteroffensive.
Podolyak mentioned that “the start of the Ukrainian counteroffensive finally destabilized the Russian elites, intensifying the internal split that arose after the defeat in Ukraine.”
He added: “Today we are actually witnessing the beginning of a civil war.”
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Britain’s protection ministry has described the Wagner mercenary group’s armed revolt as probably the most vital problem to the Russian state in latest instances.
The ministry’s intelligence replace posted Saturday says that the feud between Yevgeny Prigozhin’s group and the Russian state has “escalated into outright navy confrontation’
“In Rostov-on-Don, Wagner has almost certainly occupied key security sites, including the HQ which runs Russia’s military operations in Ukraine,’ the update said. “Further Wagner units are moving north through Voronezh Oblast, almost certainly aiming to get to Moscow.”
The replace says there may be very restricted proof of preventing between Wagner and Russian safety forces.
“Over the coming hours, the loyalty of Russia’s security forces, and especially the Russian National Guard, will be key to how the crisis plays out,” it mentioned.
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A video that appeared on Telegram on Saturday confirmed mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin assembly with Russia’s Deputy Defense Minister Yunus-Bek Yevkurov and deputy chief of the General Staff Vladimir Alexeyev.
In the video, whose origin couldn’t not be independently verified, Prigozhin claimed that he and his troops had been “saving Russia” and demanded that the Russian authorities quit Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov.
“We want to get the chief of the General Staff and Shoigu,” Prigozhin mentioned. “Until they are here, we are here, we are blocking the city of Rostov and go toward Moscow.”
Yevkurov and Alexeyev within the video tried to steer Prigozhin to withdraw his forces from Roston-on-Don, however to no avail.
Prigozhin, a billionaire with ties to the Kremlin, has a long-running feud with the Russian navy management.
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Ukraine’s head of navy intelligence says the battle between the Russian navy management and mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin is “a frontal clash of lies and truth.”
Kyrylo Budanov advised Ukrainian tv on Saturday that the battle stands out as a result of Prigozhin, whether or not “you like him or not, he mainly says (the) truth” whereas Russia’s Defense Ministry tells “mainly lies.”
He mentioned that the battle “is not fake.”
Budanov mentioned that, whereas senior Defense Ministry officers speak of advances with younger and courageous troopers, Prigozhin factors to miscalculations, poor gear, lack of coaching and different issues.
He mentioned: “This is a frontal clash of lies and truth. Even though both completely work in the interest of the Russian Federation, we need to remember this.”
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Russian President Vladimir Putin addressed the nation Saturday and vowed to defend the nation and its individuals from an armed revolt declared by mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin.
Putin mentioned the mutiny amounted to “a deadly threat to our statehood” and vowed “tough actions” in response. “All those who prepared the rebellion will suffer inevitable punishment. The armed forces and other government agencies have received the necessary orders,” Putin mentioned.
He referred to as Prigozhin’s actions, with out referring to the proprietor of the Wagner personal navy firm by identify, “a betrayal” and “a treason.” He urged “those who are being dragged into this crime not to make a fatal and tragic, unique mistake, to make the only right choice — to stop participating in criminal acts.”
Putin condemned the revolt at a time when Russia was “fighting the toughest battle for its future” with its conflict in Ukraine. “The entire military, economic and information machine of the West is waged against us,” Putin mentioned.
Source: www.bostonherald.com”