Metropolis Desk –
The Kremlin refused to categorically confirm Yevgeny Prigozhin’s death, citing the need to wait for test results, but claimed Western claims that he had been executed on its orders were an “absolute lie.”
Prigozhin, the leader of the Wagner mercenary group, was reportedly aboard the private plane that crashed on Wednesday night northwest of Moscow, according to the Russian aviation authorities.
Exactly two months to the day after Prigozhin led a failed mutiny against army chiefs, President Vladimir Putin issued a message of sorrow to Prigozhin’s family on Thursday. This was his first public statement following the crash.
Putin praised Prigozhin but acknowledged that he had also made some “serious mistakes,” citing “preliminary information” that Prigozhin and his senior Wagner mercenary group allies had all been slain.
Without providing any proof, Western politicians and commentators have asserted that Putin ordered Prigozhin’s execution as retaliation for instigating the army coup from June 23 to 34, which also represented the biggest challenge to Putin’s rule since he assumed office in 1999.
The charge and numerous others like it, according to Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, are untrue.
The cause of this jet crash and the terrible deaths of the passengers, including Yevgeny Prigozhin, are currently the subject of a great deal of speculation. Naturally, all of this speculating is presented in the West from a well-known perspective,” Peskov told reporters.
“This is all a complete lie, and while reporting on this subject, it is important to be factual. Not many facts are available yet. They must be developed during investigative efforts, he said.
Earlier on Friday, US President Joe Biden came under fire from Sergei Ryabkov, Russia’s deputy foreign minister, for not being surprised that Prigozhin had died in a plane crash. Ryabkov accused Biden of flouting diplomatic protocol.
Although they have started an investigation, Russian investigators have not yet revealed what they believe caused the plane to fall from the sky abruptly northwest of Moscow.
The identities of the 10 bodies that were found in the debris haven’t been formally confirmed either.
Peskov responded when asked if the Kremlin had received formal confirmation of Prigozhin’s demise: “If you listened properly to the Russian president’s remarks, he emphasized that all the appropriate procedures, including genetic tests, will now be conducted. The official results will be released as soon as they are prepared for publication.
Peskov added that it was unknown how long the testing and investigation would last and that Putin and Prigozhin had not recently met.
Therefore, it was not possible to begin discussing whether Putin would go to Prigozhin’s funeral, Peskov said to a question on the subject.
“There are no funeral dates set yet, so discussing it in any way is impossible. The only thing I can add is that the president’s schedule is now quite full.
Although there was not yet concrete evidence that Prigozhin had been aboard, British military intelligence stated on Friday that it was “highly likely” that he had passed away.
Prigozhin was killed, according to the Pentagon’s assessment.
Investigators are concentrating on the notion that one or two explosives may have been installed on board the plane, according to a report from Russia’s Baza news outlet, which has reliable sources among law enforcement organizations.
When asked about the Wagner Group’s future, which has several lucrative contracts across Africa and a detachment in Belarus that is now training the army there but currently looks to be without a head, Kremlin spokesperson Peskov was direct.
“I can’t tell you anything right now, I don’t know,” he said.
Source- Arab News
