Wagner fighter jets enter the southern Russian city of Rostov
Russian President Vladimir Putin vowed to quell an armed mutiny after the private army of mercenary tycoon Yevgeny Prigozhin took control of a southern city as part of an effort to topple the leadership. military.
Here’s a timeline of events as they happened in the last 24 hours.
FRIDAY
Prigozhin released a video stepping up his feud with Russia’s top military and for the first time refuted Moscow’s core justifications for invading Ukraine.
– In a series of recordings later posted on Telegram, Prigozhin said that the “evil” of the Russian military leadership “must be stopped” and that his force of Wagner mercenaries would lead a ” march for justice” against the Russian army.
– Russia’s FSB security service responded by opening a criminal case against Prigozhin, saying he had called for armed mutiny.
– Russia’s deputy commander of Ukraine’s campaign, General Sergei Surovikin, called on the Wagner militias to give up their opposition to the military leadership and return to their bases.
SATURDAY
– Prigozhin says his men have crossed the border from Ukraine to Russia and are ready to “do whatever it takes” against the Russian army.
Wagner fighters entered the southern Russian city of Rostov, Prigozhin said in an audio recording posted on Telegram.
The White House said it was monitoring the situation regarding Russia and Wagner forces and would consult with allies and partners on developments.
– Russian Prosecutor General Igor Krasnov officially informed Putin of the opened criminal case against Prigozhin for armed rebellion.
– The governor of the Rostov region in southern Russia adjacent to Ukraine asked people to stay calm and stay indoors as it became clear that Wagner forces had taken control of the city of Rostov.
– Russia’s Ministry of Defense issued a statement calling on the Wagner fighters to abandon Prigozhin, saying they had been “deceived and drawn into a criminal adventure”.
– A Russian security source told Reuters that Wagner fighters took control of all military installations in the city of Voronezh, about 500 kilometers south of Moscow.
– Putin said on television vowing to crush what he called an armed mutiny. He accused Prigozhin of “treason” and “stabbing in the back”.
Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov, an ally of Putin, said his forces were ready to help quell the Prigozhin mutiny and use harsh measures if necessary.
– European governments including Britain, France, Germany and Italy issued a statement saying they were closely monitoring developments in Russia.
– Russian military helicopters open fire on a convoy of rebel mercenaries moving more than halfway towards Moscow in a flash attack after capturing Rostov overnight.
– Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said that “Russia’s weakness is obvious” and that the longer Moscow keeps its troops and mercenaries in Ukraine, the more chaos it will bring home.
(Except for the title, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from an aggregated feed.)
