Prigozhin breaks silence insisting he doesn't want to overthrow Putin
Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigozhin has broken his silence claiming his Wagner mutiny was not an attempt to overthrow the government.
In an 11-minute audio message, he defended his short-lived insurrection but said his troops were on a march to demonstrate "our protest, not to topple the government."
He claimed the decision to turn around the march on Moscow was because he and his fighters didn't want to shed Russian blood.
Prigozhin didn’t offer any details as to where he was or what his future plans are but said he was forced to take action after the Russian military attempted to destroy Wagner.
A feud between Prigozhin and Russia's top military brass had been bubbling throughout the war in Ukraine but erupted into a mutiny over the weekend.
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Yevgeny Prigozhin with Russian President Vladimir Putin (AP)Wagner mercenaries left Ukraine to seize a military headquarters in a southern Russian city and rolled troops for hundreds of miles toward Moscow, in what some said was an attempted coup.
But after less than 24 hours, they turned around.
Russian media reported that several military helicopters and a military communications plane were shot down by Wagner forces, killing at least 15.
Prigozhin denied there were any casualties on his side but said today: “We are sorry that we had to strike the aircraft but that aircraft was dropping bombs and launching missile strikes on us."
But he claimed today that if the Russian army had marched on Ukraine's capital like Wagner marched on Moscow the war would be over.
He said in the message: "The aim of the march was to avoid destruction of Wagner and to hold to account the officials who through their unprofessional actions have committed a massive number of errors".
Prigozhin looks out from a military vehicle in Russia, Saturday, June 24, 2023 (AP)The Kremlin said it had made a deal for Prigozhin to move to Belarus and receive amnesty, along with his soldiers.
There was no confirmation of his whereabouts Monday, although a popular Russian news channel on Telegram reported he was seen at a hotel in the Belarusian capital, Minsk.
Making a statement in the Commons, Foreign Secretary James Cleverly quoted Prigozhin's public statements which suggested the war in Ukraine was started so Russian defence minister Sergei Shoigu could collect personal accolades and other reasons that differ from the official Kremlin line.
The Foreign Secretary said: "He drove a coach and horses through President Putin's case for war."
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He added: "Now that Russia's leadership cannot justify this war, even to each other, the only rightful course is for Putin to withdraw his troops and end this bloodshed now."
Please check back regularly for updates on this developing story .
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