Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigozhin’s death remains unresolved. How did his plane go down? Some had said it was a deliberate missile attack. President Vladimir Putin believes someone onboard detonated hand grenades. Prigozhin was flying to St Petersburg with 10 additional people composed of three crew members and four bodyguards.
“There was no external impact on the plane – this is already an established fact,” Putin said to dispel rumors of a missile attack. “Fragments of hand grenades were found in the bodies of those killed in the crash,” Putin told a meeting of the Valdai Discussion Club in the Black Sea resort of Sochi. No additional details have been released.
Furthermore, Putin said he was displeased with the investigation as they did not drug test the bodies or what was left of them. Ten billion in cash and five kilos of cocaine were found in Wagner’s office headquarters. Why avoid this important aspect of the autopsy?
Russia remains adamant that it had no involvement. We may never know the true details surrounding Prigozhin’s final moments.
Interestingly, news that Prigozhin was working with Chinese companies for satellite imagery was revealed on the same day. The Wagner Group signed a contract in November 2022 with China for the use of two satellites for spying. Beijing Yunze Technology Co Ltd, owned by Chang Guang Satellite Technology (CGST) to Nika-Fru, received $30 million for the two satellites. Wagner called upon the company for images of Moscow in May 2023, before the attempted capitol siege. So would the Russian government have been aware of this contact? The Chinese company may not have known about the mutiny that was going to take place, and Russia certainly was unaware. Another layer into the mysterious death of Yevgeny Prigozhin.
Posted originally on the CTH on August 23, 2023 | Sundance
Obviously, we take all reports from Russian media through the prism of Suspicious Cat. Complicating matters, we take any/all reports from Western Media through the folded and mirrored prism of multiple Suspicious Cats. So don’t look for CTH to provide definitive analysis on this multi-geopolitical storyline; instead, look for me to share a series of possibilities that might not be discussed elsewhere.
As long-time readers know, I have a strong and reliable network in Peter (that’s the abbreviated name used in familiar Russian discussion with those who live in the Saint Petersburg region of Russia). I have previously discussed my opinion of the western media reporting on Yevgeny Prigozhin {Go Deep}, I will not repeat.
Dubya, Putin and Yevgeny Prigozhin the caterer.
Today, Russian media are stating that Prigozhin was killed in a plane crash after a series of meetings in Moscow, upon a return flight to Peter. Perhaps, or perhaps not. Given the nature of a very specific background in/around the issue(s) of Wagner and Prigozhin, and with both the Russian and USA geopolitical overlays as context, here are some possible considerations:
♦ Prigozhin completed his meetings in Moscow and was heading home to Peter when an unfortunate accident led to his plane crashing.
♦ Prigozhin completed his meetings in Moscow and was heading home to Peter when the Russian military leaders decided to kill him.
♦ Prigozhin completed his meetings in Moscow and was detained by Putin allies, then the return flight destroyed to disappear him.
♦ Prigozhin completed his meetings in Moscow and was returning to Peter when a successful retaliatory CIA operation killed him.
♦ Prigozhin completed his meetings in Moscow and organizing a defensive Wagner operation against NATO under the auspices of his death.
♦ Prigozhin completed his meetings in Moscow and is now very much alive and retired with no one looking for him.
♦ Prigozhin was never in Moscow and is very much alive and retired with no one looking for him. √
I’m sure the funeral will be quite superb.
(Via Fox News) Yevgeny Prigozhin, the founder of Russia’s Wagner Group who challenged the rule of Vladimir Putin just months ago, was involved Wednesday in a plane crash that has left 10 people dead outside of Moscow, state media is reporting.
The business jet was traveling from the Russian capital to St. Petersburg went it went down in the Tver region, according to the TASS news agency.
“Prigozhin was listed among the passengers, according to the Federal Air Transport Agency,” read a post by TASS on Telegram. “An investigation into the crash of the Embraer aircraft has been launched, the department noted.”
It’s not immediately clear whether Prigozhin is among the 10 reported to have died in the crash. The Pentagon told Fox News Digital that it is monitoring the situation.
“We have seen the reports. If confirmed, no one should be surprised,” White House National Security Council spokesperson, Adrienne Watson, said in a statement. “The disastrous war in Ukraine led to a private army marching on Moscow, and now – it would seem — to this.”
Putin, meanwhile, has made a public appearance at a concert in Russia after the news of the crash emerged.
In late June, Prigozhin initiated what observers called the most significant challenge to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s regime in his 23 years in power.
After marching his 25,000-strong mercenary forces to within 125 miles of Moscow, Prigozhin abruptly ended the operation and ordered his troops to return home before heading into exile in Belarus. (more) lol
Born in 1961, Prigozhin grew up as a somewhat snarky Soviet Robin Hood, a street urchin who flowed invisibly between Finland and Leningrad in a black-market social circle that, well, let’s just say I am familiar with.
When he was 20, Prigozhin was arrested for a heist and federally imprisoned for 9 years while the Soviet Union collapsed. When he exited prison Russia was different, and with St Pete now becoming a tourist destination, he joined the capitalist opportunity with a street food vending business, started a restaurant then opened a catering company.
Prigozhin is hard as nails, snarky as hell and very tricky.
He is one of the apex gremlins and very much still connected to the Peter streets, very connected. He is beloved. He was never connected to the towers of Russian politics as the West portrays. Prigozhin doesn’t have the pedigree nor the disposition for political power.
Let me put it this way, no one knows how to play gremlin mind games against the West better than Yevgeny Prigozhin. He’s a little bit like a less refined Oleg Deripaska, and much scruffier. Also remember, in February 2018, Prigozhin was one of 13 Russians indicted by Andrew Weissmann and Rod Rosenstein for interfering in the American election through the Internet Research Agency. lol
Wagner leader Yevgeny Prigozhin has offered an explanation for the attempted coup—“I went crazy.” An article by Proektsays Yevgeny Prigozhin was at St. Petersburg’s Konstantinovsky Palace in 2011 when then-prime minister Putin announced plans for the presidency. “Great hairstyle,” the Russian leader said, pointing to Prigozhin’s bald head. The two were friendly and Prigozhin has supported Putin throughout his career. Prigozhin began his career under the guise of a hot dog salesman at a car dealership before he became the feared mercenary leader. Imagine asking this man for ketchup or mustard?
Soviet army officer Andrey Bakonin came to the car dealership in 1991, where he met the future Wagner leader. He was always involved in “other” activities and hustled where he could. “Prigozhin is a tough guy,” recalls a reputable St. Petersburg businessman who personally knew many of the heroes of the 90s in St. Petersburg. “Besides, he is Jewish, which may have played a role in the fact that Mirilashvili and Spektor (prominent members of the Jewish community in St. Petersburg) hired him.” He made important connections on the ground and opened a restaurant that attracted the elite, funded by Mirilashvili. When Putin became president, he arranged a number of meetings at the restaurant. The likes of President George W. Bush and Japanese Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori ate at the establishment.
He allegedly had staff eavesdrop on important meetings held at his restaurant and reported back to the man in power. Prigozhin’s associates say he has always been prone to violence. They alleged he hired a man called the “Teacher” who would brutally beat his staff, who often doubled as spies. He had a keen interest in war and reportedly sat over huge world maps, outlining where friends and foes resided. Wagner PMC first began around 2014 as a detachment from Lieutenant Colonel Dmitry Utkin’s command. He was fighting for Putin. PMC became involved in fights in Syria and Africa and took it extremely personally. He contracted cancer at one point and is said to be hyper-conscious of his health. He has quite an interesting story.
But what this all entails is an apology to Putin. Claiming he had a psychological break paints Putin as the strong leader, while Prigozhin remains the unstable grunt with no intentions of taking over Russia. Some outlets state that his medical history caused him to act erratically. His associates are using every excuse to explain why he staged a coup and dared to oppose Putin. Wagner has begun to hand over weapons to Russia. Is Prigozhin in exile in Belarus or back in Russia? Is he alive? Many do not believe he actually met with Putin after the event on June 23. No one is quite sure, but his plea of insanity is a final attempt to ask for forgiveness and tell the world that he is subservient to the Russian government.
Posted originally on the CTH on July 10, 2023 | Sundance
Apparently, the western media narrative about Wagner leader Yevgeny Prigozhin leading a revolt against Russian President Putin was, well, shall we say a little overstated. According to recent news reports, President Putin met with Wagner mercenary leader Yevgeny Prigozhin a few days after the “march on Moscow,” the Kremlin has said.
Putin invited Prigozhin – and a number of his commanders – to a meeting in Moscow so Wagner could air their grievances. Prigozhin was upset that his forces were seemingly overexposed to excessive risks in the Ukraine combat operations. “The president gave an assessment of the company’s actions on the front,” Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said of the three hour meeting on 29 June. “Putin listened to the commanders’ explanations and suggested variants of their future employment and their future use in combat,” Mr Peskov added.
This meeting undermines the western narrative as promoted by the U.S State Department and CIA through their official media stenographers.
This meeting aligns exactly as we had mentioned, and is bolstered by Yevgeny Prigozhin being in his hometown of St Petersburg a little over a week ago, which we have independently confirmed. There is no “exile from Russia” as western media have claimed.
(Fox News) Russian President Vladimir Putin met with Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin, leader of the attempted mutiny against the Kremlin last month, just days after the march on Moscow was thwarted.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Monday the meeting lasted some three hours on June 29, just five days after the attempted mutiny. Peskov released few details on the hours-long meeting but said that Putin provided an “assessment” of Wagner’s actions on the battlefield as well as “the events of June 24.”
“The commanders themselves presented their version of what happened. They underscored that they are staunch supporters and soldiers of the head of state and the commander-in-chief, and also said that they are ready to continue to fight for their homeland,” the spokesman said.
[…] Prigozhin has repeatedly claimed he was not rebelling against Putin but against his top military commanders, including Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu and Chief of the General Staff Gen.Valery Gerasimov, who he says mistreated Wagner forces in Ukraine.
[…] It was originally believed that Prigozhin agreed to end his mutiny even as his men rapidly approached Moscow and reversed course just 125 miles out from the capital city after he and his men were granted safe haven in Belarus in exchange for their exile from Russia.
However, this agreement appears to either not have been the case or has yet to be realized, as sources have told Fox News Digital that Prigozhin was spotted in his hometown of St. Petersburg earlier this month – reports that were echoed by Lukashenko Thursday. (read more)
The Wagner mercenary group attempted what the media is calling a coup. Chief Yevgeny Prigozhin in the video above warns Russia to improve its treatment of soldiers. Otherwise, there would be a revolution “just like 1917,” also known as the Great October Socialist Revolution. He condemned Russia for not providing Wagner with enough equipment, claiming the leaders left his men for dead. He curses the elite in Russia and tells them to send their own children to fight on the battlefield. “Children of the ordinary come back in zinc coffins,” he said, urging children of the elite to go to battle and post it on their social media platforms. “First the soldiers will stand up, and after that, their loves ones will rise up.”
The threat of a revolution against the existing government was considered an embarrassment to Putin by the media. Rumors began swirling that the CIA or some western agency must have paid off Wagner. People even wondered if the missing $6 billion in funds from the Pentagon ended up in Wagner’s pockets. The truth of the matter is that this attempted coup only gave Putin more power.
Prigozhin does not want the oligarchs behind Putin in charge. He hates the elites, if the video above is any indication. Wagner is a tiny portion of Russia’s military. They would have been outnumbered by far. This situation allowed Putin to declare Counter Terrorist Operation (CTO) regime, a form of martial law.
CTO grants the Russian government the power to control the public. They can legally inspect individuals, cars, residences, check documentation, and anything else as there is a terrorist concern. They can seize private property for personal purposes. They can implement a lockdown or resettle portions of the population to different areas. The government no longer needs warrants to search private property. Perhaps most importantly, they can limit all communications. The Russian government could turn off internet access to the country and cut phone lines. They can also listen in to all phone calls and fully monitor the public. All this alleged coup did was provide the Russian government with complete power over the people.
Update: Russia has lifted CTO, but they can implement it again at any time. “Due to the absence of threats to life, health, property and other legally protected interests of people, the head of the counter-terrorist operation, the head of the Federal Security Service of Russia for the city of Moscow and the Moscow region decided to cancel the counter-terrorist operation legal regime in Moscow and the Moscow region from 9 a.m. on Monday,” said Russia’s National Anti-terrorism Committee in a statement.
Note that China says they would help Russia “achieve national stability” to combat Wagner. Russian allies cannot enter or aid the war in Ukraine, but helping Russia combat internal forces is a grey area.
Posted originally on the CTH on June 25, 2023 | Sundance
Well, I have not written about the events with Wagner in Russia, in part because coincidentally I have a good source in St Petersburg who told me several days ago to look out for something with Wagner and Putin. Wagner’s leader, Yevgeny Prigozhin, was born in St Pete (Leningrad).
Born in 1961, Prigozhin grew up as a somewhat snarky Soviet Robin Hood, a street urchin who flowed invisibly between Finland and Leningrad in a black-market social circle that, well, let’s just say I am familiar with.
When he was 20, Prigozhin was arrested for a heist and federally imprisoned for 9 years while the Soviet Union collapsed. When he exited prison Russia was different, and with St Pete now becoming a tourist destination, he joined the capitalist opportunity with a street food vending business.
Prigozhin is hard as nails, snarky as hell and very tricky.
He is one of the apex gremlins and very much still connected to the streets, very connected. He was never connected to the towers of Russian politics as the West portrays. Prigozhin doesn’t have the pedigree nor the disposition for political power.
Let me put it this way, no one knows how to play gremlin mind games against the West better than Yevgeny Prigozhin. He’s a little bit like a less refined Oleg Deripaska, and much scruffier. Also remember, in February 2018, Prigozhin was one of 13 Russians indicted by Andrew Weissmann and Rod Rosenstein for interfering in the American election through the Internet Research Agency, lol {insert eyeroll}.
Here’s a picture of the horrible and dangerous Wagner boys executing their Saturday reign of terror inside Russia during the “coup” lol.
Looks like the street urchin from Leningrad cashed out thanks to the DoD/CIA, and then bailed out on Vladimir Putin. A win/win.
I hear Belarus is awesome this time of year… and even Vladimir Putin has got to admit it was all well-played.
Well done, Yevgeny…. well done. Enjoy your retirement.
Meanwhile, back in the Western propaganda news networks.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Secretary of State Antony Blinken is one of the many top Biden administration officials who has been monitoring the events of the last two days. And he joins us from the State Department. Good morning to you, Mr. Secretary.
SECRETARY OF STATE ANTONY BLINKEN: Morning, Margaret.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Can you tell us who in the Biden administration has been in touch with Russian leadership?
SEC. BLINKEN: Well, I instructed my own team at the President’s behest to engage with the Russians, first and foremost, to make sure that they understood their responsibilities in terms of protecting our own personnel, ensuring their safety and well-being, as well as any American citizens in Russia. So a number of people have engaged to make sure that the Russians got that message.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Is the U.S. ready for further unrest in Russia, and the scenario that Vladimir Putin does not remain in power?
SEC. BLINKEN: Margaret, this is an unfolding story. And I think we’re in the midst of a moving picture. We haven’t seen- we haven’t seen the last act. We’re watching it very closely and carefully, but just step back for a second and put this in- in context. Sixteen months ago, Russian forces were on the doorstep of Kyiv in Ukraine, thinking they’d take the city in a matter of days, thinking they would erase Ukraine from the map as an independent country. Now over this weekend, they’ve had to defend Moscow, Russia’s capital, against mercenaries of Putin’s own making. Prigozhin himself in this entire incident has raised profound questions about the very premises for Russia’s aggression against Ukraine in the first place, saying that Ukraine or NATO did not pose a threat to Russia, which is part of Putin’s narrative. And it was a direct challenge to Putin’s authority. So this raises profound questions. It shows real cracks. We can’t speculate or know exactly where that’s gonna go. We do know that Putin has a lot more to answer for in the- in the weeks and months ahead.
MARGARET BRENNAN: But is the U.S. prepared for the potential of the fall of the Putin government? And is their nuclear stockpile, the largest in the world, secure?
SEC. BLINKEN: We always prepare for every contingency in terms of what happens in Russia. It’s an internal matter for the Russians to figure out. Of course, when we’re dealing with a major power, and especially a major power that has nuclear weapons, that’s something that’s of concern, something we’re very focused on. We haven’t seen any change in Russia’s nuclear posture. There hasn’t been any change in ours, but it’s something we’re going to watch very, very carefully.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Vladimir Putin is appearing on television this morning. But it appears to have been pre-recorded. Do you know the whereabouts of Vladimir Putin right now? Is he in Moscow?
SEC. BLINKEN: I don’t want to- I don’t want to speculate on that, or what information that we have. Again, we’re watching that- that carefully. I think one of the things this- this tells you is that we still don’t- don’t have finality in terms of what was actually agreed between Prigozhin and Putin. I suspect that we’re going to learn more in the days and weeks ahead about what- what deal they struck. Our focus is relentlessly on Ukraine, making sure that they continue to have what they need to defend themselves, to take back the territory that Russia seized. The President brought together not only the national security cabinet yesterday, he brought together the leaders of our key allies and partners. He instructed all of us to do the same. We have tremendous unity of purpose and unity of action when it comes to supporting Ukraine. And that’s where our focus is.
MARGARET BRENNAN: But as you just said, Prigozhin drew into question the very premise for Vladimir Putin’s war. So do the Wagner fighters return to the fight in Ukraine? Do we know?
SEC. BLINKEN: Too soon to tell what’s going to happen to the Wagner forces, whether they go back to the fight. And it was extraordinary that they were moving out of Ukraine and into Russia. But it’s too soon to tell whether they’re going to go back into the fight as Wagner, whether they get integrated into regular Russian forces. What this means for Wagner in other parts of the world. I mean, keep in mind, both Putin and Prigozhin are responsible for committing terrible acts in Ukraine against Ukrainian civilians. But also, in the case of Wagner, in country after country in Africa, wherever Wagner is, death and destruction and exploitation follow. But all of this is likely to unroll in the in the coming days in the coming weeks. To the extent that it presents a real distraction for – for Putin, and for Russian authorities, that they have to look at – sort of mind their their rear even as they’re trying to deal with the counter offensive and Ukraine. I think that creates even greater openings for the Ukrainians to do well on the ground.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Well, as you just indicated, Yevgeny Prigozhin has a footprint that goes from Africa, to Syria to Ukraine. Do you have any idea where he is right now?
SEC. BLINKEN: I can’t get into what we know or don’t know, through- through- through intelligence. It’s something that we’re looking at, and that we’re tracking. But for us, the most important thing is to do exactly what the president did yesterday, which was, even as he brought people together, to share whatever information we had about what was going on inside of Russia to make sure that our focus remains in supporting of the Ukrainians and making sure that they do as well as they possibly can. When it comes to the counter offensive.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Well, one of the things Prigozhin did was directly undermine the Russian military leadership. Do we know who is in charge of the Russian military right now? And how could Vladimir Putin agree to any changes in the leadership of his military and still look like he’s in charge?
SEC. BLINKEN: Now, those are- those are great questions. And I think we’ll get the answers in the- in the days and weeks ahead. It’s too soon to say with any- any certainty what the final chapter in this particular book is going to be. The- The Rising Storm of Prigozhin, inside of Russia is something that many people have seen over- over months now. Direct challenges to the leadership to the military leadership, powerful criticism of Russia’s conduct of its aggression against Ukraine, and now, questioning the very premises of the- the war. Prigozhin himself saying that Ukraine and NATO did not pose a threat to Russia, which is, you know, been part of Putin’s narrative. These create more cracks in the Russian facade. And those cracks are already profound. Economically, militarily, it’s standing in the world, all of those things have been dramatically diminished by Putin’s aggression against Ukraine. He’s managed to bring Europe together, he’s managed to bring NATO together, he’s managed to get Europe to move off of Russian energy, he’s managed to alienate Ukrainians and unite Ukraine at the same time. So across the board, this has been a strategic failure. Now, you introduce into that, profound internal divisions. And there are lots of questions he’s going to have to answer in the weeks ahead.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Is there a possibility of civil war?
SEC. BLINKEN: I don’t want to speculate on that. These are fundamentally internal matters for the Russians to- to figure out, it’s not our place to do that. It is our place to make sure that Ukraine continues to have what it needs to defend itself, and to take back the territory that Russia sees from it.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Will President Biden reach out directly to Vladimir Putin? Has the CIA director reached out to Russian intelligence?
SEC. BLINKEN: Margaret, I’m not gonna get into any diplomatic contacts that we- we may have or have had, I can tell you that, on my instruction, on the President’s instruction, we had some engagement with the Russians over the weekend to make sure they understood their responsibilities when it comes to looking out for the safety and security of our personnel in Russia. Very important that we do that, and we did that.
MARGARET BRENNAN: I want to ask you about Beijing. I was there with you earlier this week. And I listened to you pick every single one of your words very carefully. And then on our way home, President Biden called Xi Jinping a dictator with economic problems, who didn’t know what his own military was doing by flying the spy balloon over the United States. How much did that hurt the work you did?
SEC. BLINKEN: Margaret, one of the things that I think you heard me say during the trip, and after the trip is the main purpose was to bring some greater stability to the relationship. We have an obligation, and I think China has an obligation to manage that relationship responsibly, to make sure that the profound differences we have don’t veer into – into conflict. But one of the things that I said to Chinese counterparts during this trip was that we are going to continue to do things, and say things that you don’t like, just as you’re no doubt going to continue to do and say things that we don’t like. And if you look at what comes out of the Chinese Foreign Ministry –
MARGARET BRENNAN: Are you saying that was a strategic remark?
SEC. BLINKEN: — on a daily basis, you’ll hear that. The President always speaks candidly, he speaks directly. He speaks clearly, and he speaks for all of us. But the entire focus of what we’re doing is to make sure that even when we’re expressing our differences, by action, or by words, just as they’re doing the same thing. We continue to work through that, to build our lines of communication, because we have a responsibility. And we especially have a responsibility to make sure that the competition we’re in doesn’t veer into conflict, I think we’ve now put in place a better path to do just that. And we’ll see that over the next weeks and months.
MARGARET BRENNAN: You also said that Chinese officials assured you they won’t provide legal assistance to Russia, but that Chinese companies are. According to US Treasury, Chinese companies have also done business with the Wagner group. Have you reached out to the Chinese about trying to gauge what is happening on the ground inside Russia now?
SEC. BLINKEN: Again, I can’t get into any diplomatic context that we may or may not have had. But, you’re exactly right, that when it comes to the visit, the Chinese did reiterate to us, as well as to many other countries that they have not and will not provide lethal military assistance to Russia for use in Ukraine. I also raised the concerns that you said about Chinese companies providing that kind of support and pressed them to be vigilant about that. I’m sure they’re making their – their own assessments about what’s happened inside of Russia in recent days. And as – as our contacts continue to unfold, as we have stronger and more sustained lines of communication, one of the things that we said we need to talk about is the ongoing Russian aggression against Ukraine. It’s something we spent some time talking about when I was in China. I would expect those conversations to continue.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Secretary Blinken, thank you for your time this morning.
SEC. BLINKEN: Thanks, Margaret. Good to be with you.
Personally, I like the simplicity of Wagner’s duct tape battlefield ID’s.
It was even right there in the Friday night timing… but no one noticed.
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