The ceremony for the boss of the Wagner group, Evgueni Prigojine, killed in a plane crash, was held in private, his company announced on Tuesday, however calling on those who wish to “say their farewells” to him in a cemetery in Saint PETERSBOURG. “The farewell to Yevgeny Viktorovich took place in private. Those wishing to say goodbye can go to the Porokhovskoye cemetery,” his company, Concord, said on Telegram.
The cemetery is located at the northeast end of the former imperial capital, where Wagner’s boss was from, also a businessman who made his fortune in the restoration. It was not immediately clear whether Wagner’s leader had ever been buried. This is the first message from Concord since Wagner’s aborted rebellion against the Russian general staff at the end of June, which had made Yevgeny Prigojine the enemy of power.
“Fake news”
The Kremlin announced earlier Tuesday that President Vladimir Putin was not planning to attend the funeral of Yevgeny Prigojine, whom he called a “traitor” during his mutiny. “The presence of the president is not planned, we have no specific information on the funeral,” presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters late in the morning. Telegram channels claiming to be linked to Wagner claim that the Russian authorities were not notified of the farewell ceremony, even that Yevgeny Prigozhin’s collaborators spread “false information” on other places potential to cover their tracks.
Yevgeny Prigojine, who after years spent in the shadows had become one of the most vocal figures in Russian political and military life with the offensive in Ukraine, died on Wednesday in the crash of the plane transporting him to northwest of Moscow. The disaster, which also killed his right-hand man Dmitry Utkin and eight others, raised suspicions, with Westerners and Ukraine implying that the Kremlin could be involved. Dmitry Peskov denied any revenge on Friday, denouncing “an absolute lie” and “speculation”.
A leadless investigation
On Sunday, the Russian Investigation Committee confirmed the death of Yevgeny Prigojine following “molecular genetic expertise”, without mentioning either the thesis of the accident, pilot error, or those of a bomb. or a surface-to-air missile. Vladimir Putin, who hailed Yevgeni Prigojine as a “talented” man but who made “serious mistakes”, for his part promised that the investigation into the causes will be completed.
In any case, Moscow did not wait very long to reframe the thousands of Wagner paramilitaries, obliged by a presidential decree since Friday to take an oath of “loyalty” to Russia, as soldiers of the regular army do.
A shock within Russian nationalist circles
Yevgeny Prigojine had given up his mutiny after an agreement which provided for his exile with his men in Belarus and the abandonment of the proceedings. However, he continued to visit Russia and was received at least once in the Kremlin in June. In a last video before his death, he said he was in Africa where he intended to work for the “greatness” of Russia. After the announcement of his death, Wagner fighters and residents of Russian cities gathered in front of improvised memorials, a sign of the warlord’s popularity with a segment of the population, who appreciated his outspokenness. .
His death caused a shock in Russian nationalist circles, which although favorable to the Kremlin’s offensive in Ukraine, are often critical of the general staff, which they accuse of incompetence and of chaining setbacks. On Tuesday, another figure in these circles, the blogger and former separatist commander Igor Girkin, saw his request for release from pre-trial detention refused by a Moscow court. Accused of “extremism” after criticism of Vladimir Putin and the army, Igor Guirkin faces five years in prison.