Putin breaks silence over the death of Wagner chief, Yevgeny Prigozhin
3 min read
President Putin expresses his condolences over the death of Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin terming him "a man of complicated fate"
President Putin expresses his condolences over the death of Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin terming him “a man of complicated fate”.
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday expressed his “condolences” over a plane crash that purportedly killed Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin, describing him as a man who made mistakes but achieved “results.”
Crash investigators have still to conclusively identify the remains of the 10 people believed to have died in Wednesday’s disaster northwest of Moscow, and Putin said the examination would take time.
“First of all I want to express words of sincere condolences to the families of all the victims,” Putin said in a televised meeting, calling the incident a “tragedy.”
“I knew Prigozhin for a very long time, since the early ’90s. He was a man of complicated fate, and he made serious mistakes in his life, but he achieved the right results,” Putin added.
He mentioned Prigozhin’s work in Africa — where Prigozhin claimed to be earlier in the week and where the Wagner group maintains a significant military presence.
“As far as I know, he just returned from Africa yesterday and met with some officials there,” Putin said.
He said the investigation into the crash “will take some time.”
“It will be conducted in full and brought to a conclusion. There is no doubt about that,” Putin said, in footage showing a meeting with the Russian-installed head of the Donetsk region Denis Pushilin.
The circumstances of the crash, which reportedly claimed the lives of some of Prigozhin’s close entourage, have prompted furious speculation about a possible assassination.
On Wednesday, President Biden was asked if he believed Putin was behind the crash. He replied: “There’s not much that happens in Russia that Putin’s not behind, but I don’t know enough to know the answer to that.”
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Prigozhin was branded a “traitor” by Putin after Wagner launched its rebellion in June, in what was seen as Putin’s biggest challenge to authority since he came to power.
Among those killed in the crash was Dmitry Utkin, a shadowy figure who managed Wagner’s operations and allegedly served in Russian military intelligence.
Putin said the Wagner members who died in the crash made a “significant contribution” to Moscow’s offensive in Ukraine and shared a “common cause.”
“We remember that we know that, and we will not forget that,” Putin said.
The crash occurred exactly two months after Prigozhin led a mutiny against Russia’s army leadership, an act of rebellion that Putin at the time condemned as a treacherous “stab in the back”.
But the revolt was quickly defused with a deal.
For weeks, confusion surrounded the implementation of the deal, the status of Prigozhin, and his whereabouts.
The Kremlin said he attended a meeting with Putin five days after the mutiny.
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