MOSCOW, June 25 (AFP) - Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin ordered his mercenaries to halt their march on Moscow to avoid “shedding Russian blood” and agreed to live in exile in Belarus – ending one of the biggest challenges to President Vladimir Putin’s decades-long rule.
Prigozhin said while his men were just 200km (120 miles) from the Russian capital, he decided on Saturday to turn them back to prevent killings.
“They wanted to disband the Wagner military company. We embarked on a march of justice on June 23. Now, the moment has come when blood could be spilled,” said Prigozhin in an audio message.
“Understanding responsibility [for the chance] that Russian blood will be spilled on one side, we are turning our columns around and going back to field camps as planned.”
Moscow braced for the arrival of the private army led by the rebellious mercenary commander by erecting checkpoints with armoured vehicles and troops on its southern edge. Red Square was shut down and the mayor urged motorists to stay off some roads.
Wagner’s lightning insurrection appeared to develop with little pushback from Russia’s regular armed forces, raising questions about Putin’s grip on power in the nuclear-armed nation even after the abrupt halt to Wagner’s advance.
Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko negotiated with the mercenary boss to stop Wagner’s troop movement after discussing the issue with Putin.
Prigozhin accepted Lukashenko’s offer to halt the Wagner group’s advance and further steps to de-escalate the tensions, Lukashenko’s office said, adding the proposed settlement contains security guarantees for Wagner troops.
Prigozhin did not say whether the Kremlin responded to his demand to remove Defence Minister Sergey Shoigu.
The Wagner chief will move to neighbouring Belarus as part of the deal and the criminal case against him will be closed, the Kremlin said on Saturday.
Prigozhin’s troops who joined him in the uprising will not face prosecution and those who did not will be offered contracts by the defence ministry, spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.
