MOSCOW, June 24, 2023 (BSS/AFP) - Rebel mercenaries advanced north towards
Moscow after seizing a key military base Saturday, just as Kremlin chief
Vladimir Putin's vowed to defeat the revolt and head off the threat of civil
war.
The rapidly escalating events mark the most serious challenge yet to the
Russian president's rule -- and Russia's most serious security crisis since the
strongman came to power in late 1999.
Putin's spokesman insisted the Russian leader was still at work in the
Kremlin and had not fled Moscow, as regular forces launched a
"counter-terrorist operation" to halt the rebel advance in the Voronezh region,
on the Wagner force's route to the capital.
The governor of the Lipetsk region, whose capital is just 420 kilometres
(260 miles) south of Moscow, said Wagner's private military force was "moving
across" the territory and urged civilians not to leave their homes.
In the capital, the mayor urged Muscovites to stay indoors and declared
Monday a day off work.
"The situation is difficult. I ask you to refrain from travelling around
the city as much as possible," Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said in a statement,
warning of possible road closures.
Ukrainian leaders, meanwhile, revelled in the outbreak of in-fighting among
its Russian foes, with a deputy defence minister describing it as a "window of
opportunity" for Kyiv's latest counteroffensive to rid its territory of Russian
forces.
Kyiv's top general, Valery Zaluzhny talked to US chairman of the joint
chiefs General Mark Milley and told him that Ukraine's counteroffensive "was
going according to plan."
The Russian foreign ministry retorted that it would achieve all the goals
set for what it calls the "special military operation" would be achieved, and
warned the West against trying to exploit the revolt for "Russo-phobic goals".
Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin, once a close Putin ally, said his troops
had taken control of the military command centre and airbase in the southern
city of Rostov-on-Don, the nerve centre of Russia's offensive in Ukraine, and
vowed to topple Moscow's top military leaders.
"We got to Rostov. Without a single shot we captured the HQ building," he
said, in an audio message on social media channels, claiming that local
civilians had welcomed the operation.
"Why does the country support us? Because we went on a march of justice,"
he said, claiming his men had not killed any soldiers despite having been hit
with strikes from army "artillery and after that from helicopters".
Responding to the challenge in a televised address, Putin accused Prighozin
-- whose private army provided shock troops for Moscow's offensive in Ukraine
-- of a "stab in the back" that posed a threat to Russia's very survival.
- 'Harsh measures' -
"Any internal turmoil is a deadly threat to our statehood and to us as a
nation. This is a blow to Russia and to our people," Putin said, demanding
national unity.
"Extravagant ambitions and personal interests led to treason," Putin said,
referring to Prigozhin, who built his powerbase as a catering contractor to the
Kremlin and now runs a private military force.
"All those who consciously stood on the path of betrayal, who prepared an
armed rebellion, stood on the path of blackmail and terrorist methods, will
suffer inevitable punishment, before the law and before our people," Putin
vowed.
The FSB security service accused Prigozhin of attempting to launch a "civil
conflict" and urged Wagner fighters to detain him.
Another Putin ally, Chechen strongman Ramzan Kadyrov, declared that he had
dispatched his own units to help quash the Wagner rebellion.
"Defence ministry and National Guard fighters of the Chechen Republic have
already left for the zones of tension," Kadyrov said on Telegram.
"The rebellion must be put down, and if harsh measures are necessary, we
are ready!"
Belarus also backed Moscow in the conflict.
"Any provocation, any internal conflict in military or political circles,
in the information field or in civil society is a gift to the collective West,"
the Belarusian foreign ministry said.
Latvia announced that it was tightening security on its Russian border and
would not admit refugees fleeing the chaos.
Inside Ukraine, emergency services said that three people were killed and
nearly a dozen injured in Kyiv after what authorities said was an overnight
barrage of 40 Russian cruise missiles and at least two attack drones.
- 'Civil conflict' -
After Putin's speech accusing him of treason, Prigozhin launched a second
broadside.
"On treason of the motherland: the president is deeply wrong. We are
patriots of our motherland," Prigozhin said. "Nobody plans to turn themselves
in at the request of the president, the FSB or anyone else."
Russia's headquarters in Rostov-on-Don is a key logistical base for its
offensive in Ukraine.
Watching events unfold in Russia as his own forces conduct a slow-moving
counteroffensive, Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky said the revolt showed
Russia's was failing.
"Russia's weakness is obvious. Full-scale weakness," he said.
- Critical facilities -
"And the longer Russia keeps its troops and mercenaries on our land, the
more chaos, pain, and problems it will have for itself later. It is also
obvious, that Ukraine is able to protect Europe from the spread of Russian evil
and chaos."
Armed Wagner fighters deployed around administrative buildings in Rostov
and tanks could be seen in the city centre.
As the insurrection force headed north through Voronezh and Lipetsk towards
Moscow, the capital's mayor announced that "anti-terrorist" measures were being
taken.
Critical facilities were "under reinforced protection", TASS reported,
citing a law enforcement source.
While Prigozhin's outfit fought at the forefront of Russia's offensive in
Ukraine, in recent months it has engaged in a bitter feud with Moscow's
military leadership.
He has repeatedly blamed Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu and Valery
Gerasimov, chief of the general staff, for his fighters' deaths.
