RUSSIA’S WAGNER CHIEF WARNS DEFENCE MINISTER OF COMING UKRAINIAN ATTACK

Mon 20 March 2023:

Russian mercenary boss Yevgeny Prigozhin told Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu in a letter published on Monday that the Ukrainian army was planning an offensive aimed at cutting off his Wagner forces from the main body of Russian troops in eastern Ukraine.

In the letter published by his press service, Prigozhin said the offensive was planned for late March or the start of April. He asked Shoigu to take all measures to prevent that from happening, which he said could lead to “negative consequences” for Russia’s military effort in Ukraine.

70% of Bakhmut

Forces from Russia’s Wagner Group “control about 70% of Bakhmut and continue the offensive” on the eastern Ukrainian city, the mercenary outfit’s leader Yevgeny Prigozhin said Monday.

Talks between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping have begun in the Kremlin, Russian state media reported.

During the talks, Putin said he was ready to discuss Beijing’s Ukraine peace proposal.

“We are always open to negotiations,” Putin told Xi in televised remarks carried by Russian state television. “We will certainly discuss all these issues, including your initiatives which we treat with respect, of course.”

The Chinese leader also hailed the “close ties” between Moscow and Beijing.

“We are partners in comprehensive strategic cooperation. It is this status that determines that there should be close ties between our countries,” Xi said.

“We have plenty of common tasks and objectives,” Putin told Xi, adding it was “symbolic” that the Chinese leader chose to travel to Russia for the first foreign visit of his new term.

SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES

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