President Lukashenko confirmed on June 27 that Wagner leader Yevgeny Prigozhin was in Belarus, according to The Guardian . Mr. Prigozhin was last seen on the evening of June 24 when he left the Russian city of Rostov-on-Don under an agreement to end the rebellion brokered by Mr. Lukashenko.
Mr. Yevgeny Prigozhin in Rostov-on-Don on June 24.
Accordingly, Mr. Prigozhin had to go to Belarus and the Russian security agency dropped criminal charges against him as well as Wagner members participating in the rebellion.
Mr Lukashenko said he had given Wagner an old, unused base and that the force would have to build its own accommodation. He denied media reports that Belarus was building a new base for Wagner, but added that "if they want, we will provide it for them". The leader also said that Wagner would not guard tactical nuclear weapons deployed by Russia in Belarus.
Mr. Lukashenko also said that Wagner could provide information and support to the Belarusian army on weapons and combat tactics.
Describing the events, President Lukashenko said Russia had deployed 10,000 personnel near Moscow to deal with the Wagner rebellion and was close to taking tough action. However, he said he had advised President Putin not to rush and let him speak to Mr Prigozhin first.
After the crisis ended, President Putin said Wagner should be disbanded and its members could sign contracts with the Russian Defense Ministry, go home or go to Belarus. In a meeting with security forces on June 27, the leader said the Russian government would pay all of Wagner’s money.
Specifically, in a year from May 2022, the Russian state spent 86.2 billion rubles ($1 billion) on salaries and bonuses for Wagner. Wagner's parent company Concord received 80 billion rubles ($940 million) a year from supplying food to the military. "Let's hope that no one stole anything during these activities. We will obviously look into this whole thing," TASS quoted President Putin as saying.
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