Wagner leader calls for rebellion against Russian defense chief, Kremlin orders his arrest

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The head of Wagner, a private military firm, has openly defied the Kremlin, advocating for a rebellion against Russia’s Defense Minister. Yevgeny Prigozhin’s challenge was met swiftly with Russian security services launching a criminal probe against him and demanding his capture.

Prigozhin used a combination of videos and audio files to voice his accusations, blaming Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu for initiating a rocket assault on Wagner’s camps in Ukraine on Friday. Wagner’s forces, serving as Russia’s proxies in the conflict, were the target of this strike.

Prigozhin proclaimed that his forces would retaliate against Shoigu with an armed uprising, imploring the military not to oppose them. “This is not a military coup, but a march of justice,” Prigozhin asserted.

The National Anti-Terrorism Committee, a segment of the Federal Security Services or FSB, announced that Prigozhin would be investigated for inciting an armed rebellion. The FSB called on Wagner’s soldiers to apprehend Prigozhin, urging them to disregard his “criminal and treacherous commands.” Prigozhin’s declarations were characterized as a “betrayal to Russian troops,” and as stirring up armed discord within Russia.

The exact location of Prigozhin, who has often been found near the frontlines with his troops in Ukraine, was uncertain on Friday.

Recognizing the threat, the Kremlin has mobilized riot police and the National Guard to secure essential facilities in Moscow, such as government agencies and transport infrastructure, as reported by Tass, the state news agency.

The chief prosecutor of Russia stated that the criminal investigation was warranted, and that the crime of inciting an armed rebellion could lead to a maximum of 20 years in prison.

President Vladimir Putin has been informed of the situation and “all necessary actions are being taken,” according to Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov.

The Wagner forces have been instrumental in Russia’s Ukrainian war effort, securing significant victories like capturing the city of Bakhmut. Prigozhin has been a vocal critic of Russia’s military leadership, blaming them for ineptitude and accusing them of withholding supplies from his troops. However, his allegations and Friday’s call for an armed uprising represent an even bolder defiance.

The Russian Defense Ministry mandated all military contractors to sign contracts with it before July 1, a move that Prigozhin, who has been at odds with the ministry for years, has refused. He declared late Friday that he was open to compromise with the Defense Ministry, but felt “they have deceitfully betrayed us.”

“They attacked our rear camps with rockets today, and many of our comrades have been killed,” Prigozhin stated. The Defense Ministry denied any attacks on Wagner camps.

He claimed that Shoigu personally ordered the attack on Wagner from the Russian military headquarters in the southern city of Rostov-on-Don, and then fled. “This villain will be stopped,” he declared referring to Shoigu.

“Russia’s military leadership, the embodiment of evil, must be halted,” he cried, imploring the army not to resist Wagner’s efforts to “reestablish justice.”

Security has also been heightened in Rostov-on-Don, Tass reported, with military and law enforcement personnel patrolling the streets, supported by armored vehicles and aerial patrols.

Col. Gen. Sergei Surovikin, the deputy commander of Russian forces in Ukraine, warned Wagner forces against rebelling, as it would benefit Russia’s adversaries, who are “anticipating an escalation of our domestic political situation.”

Another senior military officer, Lt. Gen. Vladimir Alexeyev, branded Prigozhin’s action as “insanity” and cautioned it could ignite a civil war in Russia.

“It’s a betrayal to the nation and the president,” he stated. “It’s inconceivable to inflict a more damaging blow to Russia’s image and its armed forces. Only enemies of Russia could orchestrate such a provocation.”

The Russian Defense Ministry claimed that Ukrainian forces were preparing to seize on “Prigozhin’s provocation,” amassing troops for an attack around Bakhmut. The Ministry stated that Russian artillery and aircraft were targeting Ukrainian forces as they prepared to initiate an offensive in the area.

In another development in the Ukraine war, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy urged other countries to heed warnings that Russia may be plotting an assault on an occupied nuclear power plant to create a radiological disaster.

His administration briefed international representatives on the potential threat to the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, which has been shut down for months. Zelenskyy anticipates other nations to “send appropriate messages and exert pressure” on Moscow.

The Kremlin has denied any threats to the plant from Russian forces.

The prospect of a lethal radiation release has been a concern since Russian forces invaded Ukraine last year and took control of the plant, the largest nuclear power station in Europe. The head of the U.N.’s atomic energy agency has tried unsuccessfully for months to establish a safety perimeter around the facility, which has been under continuous shelling.

The International Atomic Energy Agency stated on Thursday that “the military situation has become increasingly tense” as a Ukrainian counteroffensive unfolds this month in Zaporizhzhia province, where the plant is located, and in an adjacent part of Donetsk province.

Despite shutting down the plant’s six reactors last fall to mitigate the risk of a meltdown, experts have warned of a potential radiation leak if the cooling system for the reactors’ cores and spent nuclear fuel loses power or water.

Over months of conflict, Russia and Ukraine have accused each other of escalating the threat to the plant. On Friday, IAEA Director-General Rafael Mariano Grossi met with the head of Russian state nuclear corporation Rosatom in the Kaliningrad exclave of Russia to discuss the plant’s condition. Rosatom’s director Alexey Likachev and other officials “emphasized their expectation of specific steps” from the U.N. agency to prevent Ukrainian attacks on the plant and its surrounding area, according to a statement from the Russian corporation, which constructs and operates nuclear power plants.

Earlier this week, Ukrainian officials accused Russia of mining the plant’s cooling system, already at risk due to a dam collapse that depleted water in a reservoir used by the power station.

On Friday, Ukrainian Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Maliar stated that Russia has increased its defensive forces in southern Ukraine in response to an early counteroffensive and has intensified its efforts to seize more ground in the east. When asked if the Ukrainian military’s initial attacks were a precursor to a larger assault, Maliar told Ukrainian television: “We are yet to see the main events, and the main blow. And indeed, a portion of reserves will be used later.”

Ukrainian forces have thus far only made small gains in Zaporizhzhia province, one of four regions that Putin unlawfully annexed last year. Putin has vowed to defend these regions as Russian territory.

Zelenskyy has stated that Ukraine is fighting to force Russian troops out of these regions, as well as the Crimean Peninsula, which Moscow unlawfully annexed in 2014 and is using as a base for operations in the ongoing 16-month war. If the counteroffensive breaks Russian defenses in the south, Ukrainian forces may try to reach two occupied port cities on the Sea of Azov and disrupt Russia’s land route to Crimea.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) about Wagner Rebellion

More about Wagner Rebellion

• “Yevgeny Prigozhin: Profile on the Wagner PMC Head”
• “Wagner Group: Overview and Background”
• “Current Situation in Ukraine: Conflict with Russia”
• “Sergei Shoigu: Profile on Russia’s Defense Minister”
• “Russia’s Laws on Armed Rebellion and Its Consequences”