Russian resident Vladimir Putin has given soldiers of the Wagner private military company that attempted a mutiny over the weekend a choice.
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The President stated in a televised address on Monday that the soldiers can either sign a contract with Russia’s Defense Ministry Ministry or other security agencies, return home or move to neighboring Belarus.
“You have the opportunity to sign a contract with the Defense Ministry and other law enforcement agencies or return to your family and friends. Anyone, who wants to, can go to Belarus,” Putin said, addressing the members of the private military company.
In his address, President Putin said that “the overwhelming majority of the fighters and commanders of the Wagner group are also Russian patriots, devoted to their people and country. They proved this with their courage on the battlefield.”
He went on to say that the organizers of the insurrection kept the soldiers in the dark, and tried using them against “their brothers in arms, with whom they fought shoulder to shoulder for the sake of the country and its future.”
Putin thanked the the Wagner soldiers and commanders, who “stopped at the last line” and didn’t allow the “fratricidal bloodshed” to take place. He added that the promise he gave during negotiations to settle the crisis will be kept.
In words that appear to be directed at Russia’s adversaries, Putin stated that any attempt to blackmail Russia or foment unrest would fail.
He thanked Russia’s security officials for their work during the mutiny, present amongst them was Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu, who the Wagner company made out to be the target of the mutiny.
Wagner launched a major mutiny late on Friday on the order of its head, businessman Evgeny Prigozhin.
The leader of the Wagner group, Yevgeny Prigozhin’s announced on Saturday via his Telegram handle that the group has seized “all military facilities” in the southern Russian city of Rostov-on-Don. They then started moving towards Moscow.
Prigozhin at that time that his aim was “not a military coup but a march for justice.”
The revolt came to a halt on Saturday night as Prigozhin announced that his men would be returning to their field camps following talks with Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko.
Prigozhin, who said that he launched the insurrection because “they [the Defense Ministry] wanted to disband Wagner PMC,” will leave Russia and “go to Belarus” as a result of the deal, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said. The criminal case against Prigozhin will be dropped, with Wagner fighters, who took part in the mutiny, also avoiding prosecution, he added.
Nnamdi Maduakor is a Writer, Investor and Entrepreneur
