Lukashenko said Wagner Group leader is in Belarus.

Belarusian President Lukashenko confirmed that Prigozhin is in the country, after the Wagner leader reached an agreement to leave Russia and avoid prosecution for rebellion.

"I saw Prigozhin on the plane. Yes, he is indeed in Belarus today," President Alexander Lukashenko said during a meeting with Belarusian officers on June 27, referring to Wagner operative Yevgeny Prigozhin. It is unclear whether the plane carrying Wagner has landed in Belarus yet.

Earlier, Lukashenko said Belarus would benefit from Wagner's combat experience. "They are experienced. They will help determine which weapons are effective and which are not. And tactics, weapons, ways of attacking and defending. These are invaluable," he said at a meeting with the Defense Minister.

Belarusian leaders insist they will not build barracks for Wagner, but will provide accommodation if they wish and have suggested an abandoned military base. Belarus also has no intention of allowing Wagner to open a recruitment center in the country.

Wagner leader Yevgeny Prigozhin leaves the Southern Military District headquarters in Rostov-on-Don, Russia, on June 24. Photo: AFP

President Lukashenko was one of the key figures in stabilizing the situation in Russia after Prigozhin led thousands of fighters from the Ukrainian battlefield back to Russia on June 24th to "demand justice." He and Russian officials negotiated with leader Wagner, establishing an agreement to de-escalate tensions afterward.

According to the agreement, Prigozhin would travel to Belarus, and the Kremlin would not prosecute him or the other members of the Wagner Rebellion. The fighters could follow their boss or sign contracts with the Russian Ministry of Defense . The Wagner leader left Rostov-on-Don, the capital of Rostov province in southern Russia, that same evening and his whereabouts are unknown afterward.

The flight tracking website Flightradar24 reported that an Embraer Legacy 600 aircraft linked to Prigozhin appeared in Rostov at 2:32 GMT (9:32 Hanoi time) and began its descent near the Belarusian capital Minsk at 4:20 GMT.

Responding to questions about Prigozhin, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said today that the agreement to end the rebellion is being implemented and President Vladimir Putin keeps his word. The Kremlin also has no information on Wagner's current whereabouts.

By Như Tâm (According to Reuters, AFP )

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