Putin calls armed rebellion by mercenary chief a betrayal and vows to punish leaders

MOSCOW, Russia (AP):

Russian President Vladimir Putin today vowed harsh punishment for the organisers of an armed rebellion spearheaded by mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin, who led his troops out of Ukraine and into a key southern city.

Putin denounced the uprising as “a stab in the back” in an address to the nation. It was the biggest threat to his leadership in over two decades in power.

Prigozhin’s private army appeared to control the military headquarters in Rostov-on-Don, a city 660 miles (over 1,000 kilometres) south of Moscow that runs Russian operations in Ukraine, Britain’s Ministry of Defence said.

Wagner troops and equipment also rolled into Russia’s Lipetsk province, about 360 kilometres (225 miles) south of Moscow, where authorities “are taking all necessary measures to ensure the safety of the population,” said regional Governor Igor Artamonov via Telegram. He did not elaborate.

As the fast-moving events unfolded in Russia, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Moscow is suffering “full-scale weakness” and that Kyiv was protecting Europe from “the spread of Russian evil and chaos.”

In his speech, Putin called the actions by Prigozhin, whom he did not mention by name, a “betrayal” and “treason.”

“All those who prepared the rebellion will suffer inevitable punishment,” Putin said. “The armed forces and other government agencies have received the necessary orders.”

Prigozhin said his fighters would not surrender, as “we do not want the country to live on in corruption, deceit and bureaucracy.”

“Regarding the betrayal of the motherland, the president was deeply mistaken. We are patriots of our homeland,” he said in an audio message on his Telegram channel.

Prigozhin’s private army, known as Wagner, has been fighting alongside regular Russian troops in Ukraine. His goals weren’t immediately clear but the rebellion marks an escalation in his struggle with Russian military leaders, whom he accused of botching the war in Ukraine and hobbling his forces in the field.

“This is not a military coup, but a march of justice,” Prigozhin said.

Prigozhin posted a video of himself at the military headquarters in Rostov-on-Don and claimed his forces had taken control of the airfield and other military facilities in the city. Other videos on social media showed military vehicles, including tanks, on the streets.

“We didn’t kill a single person on our way,” Prigozhin said in one of his several messages posted as the day went on, adding that his forces seized the military headquarters “without a single gunshot.” His claims could not be independently verified. The Russian authorities haven’t reported any casualties so far, either.

The rebellion comes at a time when Russia is “fighting the toughest battle for its future,” Putin said, as western governments heap sanctions on Moscow and arm Ukraine.

“The entire military, economic and information machine of the west is waged against us,” Putin said.

Russia’s security services, including the Federal Security Service, or FSB, called for Prigozhin’s arrest after he declared the armed rebellion late Friday.

In a sign of how seriously the Kremlin took the threat, authorities declared a “counterterrorist regime” in Moscow and its surroundings, allowing restricted freedoms and enhancing security in the capital.

It was not immediately clear how Prigozhin was able to enter the southern Russian city or how many troops he had with him.