A SENIOR RUSSIAN GENERAL HAD ADVANCE KNOWLEDGE OF PRIGOZHIN’S PLANS, REPORT

President Putin decorates the general for his work in Syria. ALEXEI DRUZHININ / SPUTNIK / KRE

Wed 28 June 2023:

A number of claims and counterclaims are being made on the Ukraine-Russia conflict on the ground and online. While Independent Press takes utmost care to accurately report this developing news story, we cannot independently verify the authenticity of all statements, photos and videos.

General Sergey Surovikin, the deputy commander of Russia’s military operations in Ukraine knew in advance that Yevgeny Prigozhin, the head of the mercenary force leading Russia’s military operations in Ukraine, was preparing a coup against Moscow’s defense officials, the New York Times reported on Tuesday.

The newspaper cited U.S. officials briefed on U.S. intelligence regarding the matter, and reported that the officials were “trying to learn if Gen. Sergey Surovikin, the former top Russian commander in Ukraine, helped plan Mr. Prigozhin’s actions last weekend.”

Surovikin, nicknamed “General Armageddon” by the Russian media, had been put in overall charge of Ukraine operations in October. But in January Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu appointed Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov to oversee the campaign, with Surovikin staying on as his deputy.

Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigozhin was reported to have arrived in Belarus on Tuesday under a deal negotiated by Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, which narrowly prevented the mercenaries from marching on Moscow on Saturday after the private army mutinied against Russia’s military leaders.

The New York Times reported that American officials also said there were signs that other Russian generals also may have supported Prigozhin.

Reuters could not independently verify the report.

The Pentagon did not immediately respond to Reuters’ request for a comment. The Kremlin and the Russian defence ministry also did not immediately reply to Reuters’ queries.

Before launching the mutiny, Prigozhin had raged against both Shoigu and Gerasimov, blaming them for the campaign’s failures and the army’s lack of support for Wagner fighters.

Surovikin urged the Wagner group to give up their opposition to the military leadership and return to their bases just before Prigozhin led his fighters on a so-called “march for justice”. Having set off from the southern Russian city of Rostov-on-Don over the weekend, Prigozhin aborted the march within 200 kilometres (125 miles) of Moscow.

Prigozhin has not been seen since Saturday, when he waved to well-wishers from a vehicle in the southern Russian city of Rostov-on-Don, which his fighters briefly occupied.

On Tuesday morning, a private jet believed to belong to Prigozhin flew from Rostov to an airbase southwest of the Belarusian capital of Minsk, according to data from FlightRadar24.

SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES

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