As Wagner Group soldiers threaten mutiny against the Kremlin, distinguishing between the mercenaries of the private contractor and Russian soldiers is adding to the chaos on the ground in Russia.
Wagner Group soldiers took control of Rostov-on-Don, a Russian city that is the military headquarters in the country’s southern region, but it’s unclear who is in control, according to the BBC.
The private mercenaries also moved through the city of Voronezh as they headed toward Moscow, according to reports.
A tank belonging to Wagner Group mercenaries in Russia’s southern military command post in Rostov-on-Don appears amid posters for a visiting circus as Russian leader Vladimir Putin. AFP via Getty Images
Members of the Wagner group are seen waving a Russian national flag and the Wagner Group’s flag on the rooftop of a damaged building in Bakhmut, Ukraine. Telegram @concordgroup_official//AFP via Getty Images
Wagner group mercenaries are headed toward Moscow, according to reports. AFP via Getty ImagesDuring the war in Ukraine, the mercenaries have often worn the group’s distinctive skull badge emblem.
But they have also been supplied with uniforms and weapons by the Russian state.
Everything to know about the Wagner Group's attack on Russia
Wagner Group chief Yevgeny Prigozhin and his mercenary fighting force will not face charges and will instead be exiled despite leading an armed insurrection against Moscow on Saturday, the Kremlin said.
Prigozhin, owner and founder of the mercenary organization, called for an armed rebellion and threatened to rush Moscow in order to oust the official whom he accused of ordering the bombing of his war camps in Ukraine.
However, Prigozhin eventually agreed to halt the Wagner Group’s advance on Moscow just 120 miles from the capital after a day-long negotiation the mercenary leader had with Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, who was given permission to broker a deal with Progozhin by Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Putin’s presidential plane left Moscow early Saturday, sparking rumors that he had fled the Russian capital as the Wagner Group’s forces advanced on the city.
The president’s aircraft was spotted on flight radar flying northwest from Moscow to the St. Petersburg area — but then disappeared from the system near the city of Tver, the BBC reported, where Putin owns a large rural retreat.
While many wear non-matching combat fatigues, some also sport the standard Russian Army “Ratnik” field uniform.
Wagner Group soldiers took control of Rostov-on-Don, a Russian city that is the military headquarters in the country’s southern region, according to reports. Telegram @concordgroup_official//AFP via Getty Images
Members of Wagner group detain a man in Rostov-on-Don, Russia on June 24, 2023. AFP via Getty ImagesYevgeny Prigozhin, the owner and founder of the Wagner Group, said Saturday that 25,000 Wagner forces have massed in Rostov-on-Don, taking over the city’s military facilities and encountering no resistance from Russian conscripts.
He is threatening an armed rebellion and calling for the ouster of the country’s defense minister who he accused of the bombing of Wagner camps in Ukraine.
The Kremlin has called for Prigozhin’s immediate arrest on mutiny charges.
