Yevgeny Prigozhin, the warlord at the head of the Wagner mercenaries, has been exiled in Belarus after leading his troops to around 200km from Moscow in what appeared to be an attempt to depose Vladimir Putin. A deal brokered by Belarusian president Alexander Lukashenko, who is a close ally of Putin and a man Prigozhin has known for 20 years, sees the Wagner chief given safe passage to Belarus and all charges against him dropped.
As he left Rostov-on-Don, where earlier in the day his troops had ceased control of key military buildings, crowds gathered to cheer him off and he smiled as his car worked its way out of the city.
Prior to the agreement between the Kremlin and Wagner being reached, a convoy of Wagner military vehicles were speeding towards Moscow on the M4 motorway and were bearing down on the capital, smashing through roadblocks, before the deal was struck.
Earlier in the day, affiliates of the Wagner Group decreed that the “civil war had officially begun” after Prigozhin alleged that Russian soldiers were “using planes and helicopters to bomb columns where there are civilians” in their attempts to hit his men.
In an audio message, Prigozhin told his troops to stand down to “avoid bloodshed”. He said he “gave the order to turn back because of the risk of blood being spilled”.
Prigozhin added: “We’re turning around our convoys and going in the opposite direction.
“We left on June 23 for the march of justice. In a day we travelled, not reaching 200 km, to Moscow.
“During this time, we have not shed a single drop of the blood of our fighters.
“Now the moment has come when blood could be shed, therefore, realising all the responsibility for the fact that Russian blood will be shed on one of the sides, we turn our columns around and return in the opposite direction to the field camps, according to the plan.”
Putin’s press secretary Dmitry Peskov said that Wagner mercenaries who wished to sign a Ministry of Defence contract can do so.
Yevgeny Prigozhin leaving Rostov-on-Don triumphant (Image: Getty)
Wagner Group forces returning to their base after the agreement was reached (Image: Getty)
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Although Putin has clung on to power, it is unclear what the last 24 hours will mean for the future of his regime and the war in Ukraine, as one in four Russian troops fighting Zelensky’s troops are Wagner forces.
Earlier in the day the UK’s Ministry of Defence described the Wager mutiny as “the most significant challenge” to the Russian state in recent history.
Rishi Sunak said he was liaising with allied leaders and closely following the developments in Russia.
The Prime Minister spoke to US president Joe Biden, French president Emmanuel Macron and German chancellor Olaf Scholz on Saturday afternoon “to discuss the situation in Russia and reiterate their continuing support for Ukrainian sovereignty”, Downing Street said.
A Downing Street spokesman said: “The leaders have agreed to stay in close contact in the coming days”.
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