The Wagner Group rebels against the Putin regime and heads towards Moscow

The president of Russia, Vladimir Putin, has accused the leader of Wagner, Yevgeny Prigozhin, of ‘high treason’, after the latter assured that had under control the General Staff of the Russian forces in the city of Rostov, in the south of the country. “We are in the General Staff, 7:30 Moscow time (04:30 GMT), we control the Rostov military installations, including the airfield,” he said in a video posted on his Telegram account and confirmed that he had taken this position ” without firing a single shot.”

That Wagner has decided to attack Rostov is not trivial because it is 100 kilometers from the border with Ukraine and the command of the southern Russian military district is based there. In addition to its military importance, the city is an important commercial, industrial and transport center.

Throughout the day, the information coming from different sides –Wagner and Russia– is diffuse, but the intention of the Russian mercenaries is to reach Moscow. So much so that Moscow has taken, early in the morning, anti-terrorist measures throughout the city in addition to begin to build barricades and shield against a possible arrival of Prigozhin’s army. According to Ukrainian intelligence and as Muscovite media have been able to corroborate, the Russian Army has created machine gun nests to protect itself from Wagner’s possible arrival in the capital.

[Desde África a Ucrania, los tentáculos del Grupo Wagner con Prigozhin al frente]

The councilor of the Russian capital explained that they have organized additional control on the roads and warned that the holding of public events may be limited while calling for calm on the Russian population.

This whole situation of almost “civil war” has been unleashed after Prigozhin will unapprovingly accuse Russian military leaders of having attacked and killed a large number of fighters in an air raid. That is why he has promised revenge at the same time that the Kremlin accused Wagner’s of a military uprising against the State.

To quell this mutiny, the Russian Ministry of Defense has asked the insurgents to “return to the barracks and there will be no consequences” while Putin, in a message to the nation, has canceled that message to ensure that “our response will be harsh”. and steps will be taken to secure Rostov, the first of the cities to have fallen into Wagner’s hands. At the same time, the Russian president has assured that this uprising responds to a “betrayal” against the homeland and “everyone who rises up in arms will be punished”.

After this, the Russian National Guard has cordoned off Wagner’s headquarters in Saint Petersburg where calm is still maintained and Russian aviation has launched attacks at the height of Voronezh against the mercenary column advancing towards Moscow.

This riot has awakened in some groups their hatred towards Putin and their hopes to bring down the Moscow regime, such as the Russian Freedom Legion, which believes that this attack by Wagner could be successful, publishing in a statement that “they are developing interesting events in the vastness of our Motherland and are very reminiscent of vague times a hundred years ago… The stupid, corrupt and incompetent military-political elite of Putin’s Russia turns hundreds of thousands of men into minced meat. Prigozhin, a native of Putin’s nomenclature, decided it was his time to play his own game, to the benefit of his ever-ready “orchestra.”. We know that he has many supporters among the population of Russia and in the ranks of law enforcement agencies. We know that Prigozhin has great political ambitions and is tired of fat generals in offices who don’t know how to fight for real. We know that if he starts an armed rebellion, it is highly likely that he will succeed.”

Given the lack of information and while Russian aviation flies over and attacks Wagner’s column, the governor of the Russian region of Voronezh, Alexandr Gusev, denies the presence in this territory of forces from the group of mercenaries and thus avoid creating panic in the Russian population. In contrast, the authorities of the Russian region of Lipetsk — 150 kilometers from Voronezh — have asked the population to remain in their homes for security reasons.

The world, watch out

Meanwhile, and despite the fact that Russia has serious internal problems with this mutiny, the Army has again bombarded Kiev, although according to Ukraine, this bombardment has only caused a fire as its Army has shot down 41 Russian cruise missiles.

Poland is holding consultations on the situation and its president, Andrei Duda, has assured that “the course of events beyond our eastern border is permanently monitored“Brazil is also keeping an eye on the situation but Lula da Silva has avoided commenting on this situation. NATO and the EU are also looking with concern at what is happening in an escalation of tension before Wagner’s advance towards Moscow; but both are They qualify as an “internal matter”.

For the Ministry of Defense of the United Kingdom, what is happening today in Russia is “the biggest challenge the country has faced” in recent times, at the same time that it sees the loyalty of the troops towards Putin as a key point. That loyalty to the Russian leader has been expressed by Chechen mercenaries who say they are willing to help put down Prigozhin’s mutiny, and use harsh methods if necessary.

The United States has reported that Blinken has been in contact with the leaders of the G7 and with the High Representative of the European Union to know the situation confirming that “it will remain in close coordination with its allies and partners while the situation continues to evolve”.

Putin informed his counterparts in Belarus, Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan of the armed rebellion, according to the spokesman for the Russian Presidency, Dimitri Peskov. Georgia has also asked that the Russian borders be monitored, which must “be under strict control in view of the possibility of new migratory waves” such as the one suffered in September last year.