06/25/2023
Ukraine war in the live ticker
+++ 03:14 USA allegedly postpone sanctions against Wagner +++
The US is said to be postponing planned sanctions against the Wagner Group in Africa. That reports that “Wall Street Journal” citing people familiar with the matter. The US State Department plans to issue new regulations for Wagner’s gold deals in Africa on Tuesday. According to the report, these were put on hold against the background of the uprising against the Kremlin out of fear that they could indirectly benefit Putin.
+++ 01:49 Search of Prigozhin’s office: pictures published +++
Russian security forces release images of allegedly confiscated goods from Prigozhin’s St. Petersburg office. Russian passports can be seen, one of them apparently with Prigozhin’s photo, but with a different name. In addition, gold bars, handguns, bags of US dollars and presumably drugs were also found.
+++ 00:31 Road closures on Russian highways lifted +++
Citing the local road traffic authority, the Russian news agency Tass reports that all road closures on Russian highways have been lifted. During the course of Saturday, the M-4 motorway leading from the south to Moscow had been closed for safety reasons due to the advancing military convoy of the Wagner Group.
+++ 23:41 Kremlin: Change in the Ministry of Defense not part of the deal +++
After the uprising of the Wagner militiamen ended, it remains unclear whether Prigozhin obtained further concessions besides impunity for himself and the fighters involved. According to Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, personnel changes in the Russian Defense Ministry are not part of the agreement mediated by Belarus’ ruler Lukashenko. These stand alone in the power of the Russian President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, Vladimir Putin. “It is therefore unlikely that these issues were discussed,” says Peskow. In the course of his rebellion against Moscow, Prigozhin demanded that Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and Chief of Staff Valery Gerasimov be handed over to him.
+++ 23:05 Prigozhin leaves Rostov and is cheered +++
Apparently, Wagner boss Prigoshin left Rostov-on-Don along with his fighters. Videos circulating online show him in the back of a car. Prigozhin waves from the open window. Civilians are clapping and cheering, many are filming with their cellphones. After the mediation of the Belarusian ruler Lukashenko, Prigozhin is to go to Belarus.
+++ 22:36 Wagner fighters withdraw from Rostov +++
According to media reports, members of the Wagner Group are beginning a gradual withdrawal from Rostov. According to the Russian state news agency Tass, several vehicles with Wagner fighters have left the headquarters of the Russian military command South. Heavy vehicles and combat vehicles initially continue to hold their positions at some of the city’s traffic junctions.
+++ 21:59 Prigozhin is not prosecuted for the uprising +++
In exchange for ending their uprising, the head of the Russian mercenary force Wagner, Prigozhin, and his fighters will not be prosecuted, according to the Kremlin. After the withdrawal of the Wagner fighters mediated by Minsk, Prigozhin will go to Belarus and need not fear criminal proceedings in Russia, the Kremlin announced. Prigozchin’s mercenaries should also go unpunished.
+++ 21:29 Selenskyj calls on Russians to overthrow Putin +++
In view of the protests of the Russian mercenary group Wagner, the Ukrainian President Zelenskyj calls for the overthrow of Putin. “The longer this person is in the Kremlin, the greater the catastrophe,” says Zelenskyj in his daily video message – but this time in Russian and addressed to the Russians. The longer Russian troops are in Ukraine, the more devastation they will later bring to Russia.
At the same time, Zelenskyy is calling on the West to start supplying Ukraine with F-16 fighter jets and longer-range missiles regardless of Moscow. His country is protecting Europe from the “Russian chaos”. He demands that NATO should take in Ukraine. “The July summit in Vilnius is a historic opportunity for real solutions without looking at Russia.”
+++ 21:10 Despite the turn “maximum damage to the power system Putin” +++
According to Russia expert Alexey Yusupov, the seemingly quick end to the open confrontation between Prigozhin and Moscow shows that everyone involved is “still scared enough”. The consequences of the escalation now depend on what exactly the deal with Prigozhin contains.
You can read about the developments from the previous day here.