Day 491 of the Invasion of Ukraine: Russia purges the Military after Prigozhin’s Rebellion

Ukraine | June 29, 2023, Thursday // 13:05|  views

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Day 491 of the invasion of Ukraine. Summary of key events in the last 24 hours:

  • US: Surovikin not only knew, but also supported Prigozhin's "rebellion"
  • Putin in Dagestan: I had no doubts that you would support me in Prigozhin's rebellion
  • 12 are already the victims of the Russian strikes on Kramatorsk
  • Poland says EU should fund border security amid concerns over Wagner PMC presence
  • Zelensky expects the EU to lift restrictions on the import of Ukrainian agricultural products from September 15


US: Surovikin not only knew, but also supported Prigozhin's "rebellion"

Genерал Sergei Surovikin, the deputy commander of Russian military operations in Ukraine, was sympathetic to mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin's rebellion over the weekend, though it was unclear whether he actively supported it, US officials said yesterday, quoted by Reuters.

Prigozhin surprised the world by leading an armed rebellion on Saturday that saw fighters of his Wagner Group reach the Ukrainian border within 200km of Moscow before abruptly ending their march.

Three officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Surovikin supported Prigozhin, but Western intelligence did not know for sure whether he had helped the rebellion in any way.

At the beginning of the rebellion, Surovikin publicly called on the fighters of the private military company "Wagner" to give up their resistance to the military leadership and return to their bases.

On Tuesday, the New York Times reported that Surovikin knew in advance that Prigozhin was planning a rebellion.

Surovikin, dubbed “General Armageddon” by the Russian media for his notorious ruthlessness, is a veteran of the wars in Chechnya and Syria and has been decorated by President Vladimir Putin.

In October, Surovikin was put in charge of the military campaign in Ukraine, but earlier this year he was demoted to a deputy role after Russia's limited success in the invasion.

Prigozhin, a one-time ally of Putin, has waged an increasingly bitter feud with Moscow in recent months, including publicly saying that his troops are not being supplied with enough weapons by Russia's defense ministry.

The probable arrest of Surovikin and other reports of prosecutions of disloyal soldiers indicate the beginning of a large-scale purge in Russia's armed forces after the rebellion of the mercenary head Yevgeny Prigozhin, the Washington Institute for the Study of War wrote in its analysis yesterday.

The analysis, without drawing firm conclusions, refers to what was written by the Belarusian monitoring group "Belarusian Hajun" and by Russian military bloggers. Hajun traced the route of Prigozhin's plane and found that before landing in his exile, Belarus, he had been to Moscow and St. Petersburg - presumably to negotiate the details of the deal with Putin and the Council of Commanders of his Wagner Private Military Company. Former FSB officer Igor Girkin claims the same.

Russia's Rybar Telegram channel, one of the country's most influential pro-military unofficial media outlets, said the rebellion had provoked "large-scale purges" among the command staff of Russia's armed forces and that its defense ministry was currently undergoing a "crash-loyalty" test.

In this regard, the following rumors are circulating. The Chief of the General Staff Gen. Valery Gerasimov has been de facto removed from the leadership of the "special military operation in Ukraine", which Putin entrusted to him in January and which is currently in charge of the commander of the airborne forces of Russia, Colonel-General Mikhail Teplinsky.

Gerasimov formally retains the post of Chief of the General Staff, but to resolve issues from the so-called "SVO", he has "no relation to it" anymore.

The "purges" affect not only the leadership, but also ordinary soldiers and officers: in particular, it concerns pilots who allegedly refused to strike at mixed columns of "Wagner" and civilians and border guards who did not open fire at the column of the rebels.

Another Russian source claimed that "an atmosphere of suspicion has gripped the General Staff" and Gerasimov's cronies were accused of indecision and failures, and those close to Surovikin were accused of complicity in the mutiny.

The institute notes that it cannot confirm these rumors, but its sources have been largely accurate in their previous reports of changes in the composition of the Russian command.

Putin in Dagestan: I had no doubts that you would support me in Prigozhin's rebellion

During a surprise visit to Dagestan, Russian President Vladimir Putin said he had "no doubts" about the support of Russian citizens during the Wagner uprising on June 24, AFP reported, quoted by BTA.

"I had no doubts about the reaction of Dagestan and the whole country," Putin said during a conversation with the head of the republic Sergey Melikov, an excerpt of which was broadcast on Russian state television.

The president's uncharacteristic closeness to people beyond his inner circle and supposedly not subject to a quarantine period has sparked speculation online that Putin has not personally visited the Caucasian republic after all.

On his first trip since the rebellion, Putin listened to a report on the development of Dagestan's tourism potential:

"That's why we came here to talk about tourism, including its development in the Caucasus and here in Dagestan."

Russia deeply respects the Quran and the religious feelings of Muslims, and disrespecting this holy book is considered a crime in Russia. Putin said this, noting that such a practice is not common in all countries of the world.

"This is a shrine for Muslims and for everyone else it is also a shrine. We know that in other countries they act in a different way - they do not respect people's religious feelings and also say that this is not a crime," said the Russian president during a visit to the mosque Juma in the Dagestan city of Derbent. "In our country, this is a crime - both according to the Constitution and according to Article 282 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. It is a crime to disrespect and incite enmity between religious communities. We will always adhere to these legislative rules," noted the Russian leader.

The head of state congratulated the Muslims on Eid al-Adha. He emphasized that mutual respect and brotherly relations between Christians and Muslims strengthen the unity of the Russian people.

Dagestan is among the Russian republics with the highest percentage of men mobilized and killed at the front. On several occasions in the last year and a half, spontaneous protest movements arose in the territory, which were quickly suppressed by the law enforcement agencies.

12 are already the victims of the Russian strikes on Kramatorsk

This morning at 7:20 a.m. local time, the search and rescue operation at the site of the Russian missile attack in Kramatorsk ended. According to the latest data, 12 people were killed in the attack, UKRINFORM reported. The agency refers to a Telegram message by Ukrainian Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko.

All victims have been identified. The injured are 65.

In the Russian attack, two missiles hit objects in Kramatorsk and the region. One hit a pizzeria in the city center, and the second hit the nearby village of Bilenke.

In the impact that hit the pizzeria, three teenagers died - 14-year-old twins and a 17-year-old girl.

Poland says EU should fund border security amid concerns over Wagner PMC presence

Poland expects the European Union to help fund measures to strengthen its eastern border, Deputy Foreign Minister Pawel Jablonski said today, after Warsaw announced increased security over concerns about the presence of Russian mercenary company Wagner in Belarus. reported Reuters.

Russian President Vladimir Putin's decision to offer soldiers from the private military company the option to move to Belarus has sparked concern among NATO's eastern members that the presence of the Wagner will lead to greater instability in the region.

Yesterday, Polish Deputy Prime Minister Jarosław Kaczynski - leader of the ruling nationalist Law and Justice (PiS) party - said that, according to the Polish authorities, there may already be around 8,000 Wagner soldiers in Belarus.

He said Poland would take both temporary and permanent measures to strengthen the border, including increasing the presence of security forces and increasing border facilities.

Asked today whether Brussels should help Warsaw pay for these measures, Deputy Foreign Minister Pawel Jablonski said "Poland expects this". "European solidarity means supporting countries threatened by destabilization," he told public radio, adding: "These safeguards must be increased."

Poland accuses Belarus of artificially creating a migrant crisis at the border by bringing in people from the Middle East and Africa and trying to push them across the border, but Minsk rejects the charge.

Kaczynski said yesterday that the presence of the Wagner in Belarus could mean "a new phase of hybrid warfare, a phase much more difficult than the one we have dealt with so far".

Kaczynski considered Poland's de facto leader, appeared to take a tougher stance on border security than President Andrzej Duda, who spoke earlier in the day in Kyiv, Reuters noted.

Duda said that if necessary, Poland will increase security on its border with Belarus, but that the border is still heavily guarded.

Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki, for his part, will today present a plan to strengthen the European Union's borders at a summit in Brussels, adding that the Frontex border agency must be reformed and more funds must be allocated to help countries, who face the migration problems.

Zelensky expects the EU to lift restrictions on the import of Ukrainian agricultural products from September 15

The President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, expects that the European Union will lift restrictions on the import of Ukrainian agricultural products from September 15, BTA reported citing UKRINFORM.

The head of state of Ukraine made the statement at a press conference after the negotiations with the President of Poland Andrzej Duda and the President of Lithuania Gitanas Nauseda in Kyiv yesterday, reports the press service of the Ukrainian presidency.

Zelensky noted that this is an important moment for Ukraine. He recalled that since Russia blocked the grain initiative, at least Ukraine should have the option of transit, but added that today transit is also complicated.

"However, this issue goes beyond the bilateral relations of Ukraine and Poland - this issue has already been raised at the EU level," Zelensky said.

"We will see how all this can be unblocked. The Honorable Mrs. Von der Leyen has personally promised me that there cannot be an extension of the blocking of transit after September 15. We believe in that," said the head of state.

The President of Poland, for his part, said that there are certain solutions to ensure free trade, but there are still issues on which rational decisions need to be made, which will take time. Duda hopes that after working out the relevant mechanisms, the bans will be lifted as soon as possible.

As reported by UKRINFORM, at the beginning of June, President Volodymyr Zelensky and the Chairperson of the EC discussed ways to implement the Ukrainian peace formula, the issue of security guarantees and the export of Ukrainian agricultural products.

Novinite is still the only Bulgarian media that publishes a summary of events and highlights related to the conflict, every single day. Our coverage began on day one - 24.02.2022 and will not stop until the war has concluded. Despite the pressure, our independent media will continue to provide its readers with accurate and up-to-date information. Thank you for your support! #stayinformed

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Tags: Prigozhin, wagner, Russia, Ukraine

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