AGI – The failed coup by the leader of the Wagner paramilitary group, Yevgeny Prigozhin, reveals “real cracks” at the highest levels of the Russian state. So says the head of American diplomacy, Antony Blinken. Prigozhin has “directly challenged Putin’s authority,” and this “raises real questions and reveals real cracks” at the top of the Kremlin, the US Secretary of State said in an interview with CBS.
The United States has held intensive consultations with European allies over the past 24 hours over the crisis in Russia, but has so far refrained from commenting directly on the events. Blinken himself discussed the situation in Russia yesterday with his counterparts from the G7 countries, as well as with Poland and Turkey. In a round of Sunday broadcasts on multiple channels, Blinken said that was the case It is still “too early” to speculate about the effects of the crisis on Russia or the war in Ukraine.
Anthony Blink
But “to the extent that Russia’s attention is diverted, I think it creates an added advantage” for Ukraine amid an offensive against Russian forces, he said. “It’s still too early to know how this will develop. It’s an evolving picture,” he said, “but the fact that you have someone inside you who questions Putin’s authority and asks directly why he launched this aggression against Ukraine, in itself it is something very powerful.” “They had to defend Moscow from the mercenaries they created themselves,” Blinken said again, insisting on the “strategic failure ‘ by the Russian President in Ukraine.
Mystery of the fate of Prigozhin
24 hours after the announcement of the agreement on the withdrawal of Wagner troops a few kilometers from Moscow “so as not to shed Russian blood”, there is no more news about the fate of the leader of the uprising, Yevgeny Prigozhin. Destined for Belarus, its “status” in satellite country Russia, whose President Aleksander Lukashenko has brokered deals with the Kremlin that Prigozhin will not be prosecuted, is unclear. According to Cnn, who tried to contact his spokesman, the latter replied that he would publish news if possible. Meanwhile, the Lithuanian president said he was concerned about the possible whereabouts of Wagner’s boss in the neighboring state.
Telephone call between Zelenskyy and Biden
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy held a “positive and inspiring conversation” with US President Joe Biden. In a phone call today, the two leaders discussed “the hostilities and ongoing processes in Russia,” Zelenskyy wrote on his Telegram profile. “The world must put pressure on Russia until international order is restored. I thanked the President of the United States for his tireless support to Ukraine.
Talks between Putin and Lukashenko
Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko held telephone conversations with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin and Kazakhstan’s first President Nursultan Nazarbayev. This was announced by the Belarusian agency BelTA. The talks with Putin took place this morning, while in the afternoon Lukashenko conducted an interview with Nazarbayev, with whom he discussed the international situation, the situation in the region and Belarusian-Kazakh relations.
Putin: “Confident in carrying out military operation in Ukraine”
I am “confident” in the implementation of all plans and “tasks” related to the “military special operation” in Ukraine: “This is how I start and end the day”. This was stated by Russian President Vladimir Putin in a speech on Russian state television.
© Alexei Nikolsky/Sputnik/AFP
Wladimir Putin
In an interview with journalist Pavel Zarubin on the Russia 1 TV channel, Putin said he started and ended the day working on the special operation. “Of course I give my full attention. This is how the day begins and ends,” said the Kremlin boss. This was added by the Russian President, according to reports from the Ria Novosti agency constantly discusses issues related to the manufacture of weapons with the heads of enterprises and enterprises of the military-industrial complex, as well as with those who use weapons.
“We talk about their effectiveness, we talk about where and what still needs work, where and what is missing. We are talking about how, in what way, with what steps, at what pace we need to move forward efforts,” Putin added.
According to the Kremlin chief, increasing the rate and volume of production in the defense sector should not come at the expense of social obligations to citizens – in medicine, construction, education. “Everything should be, so to speak, in harmony with each other, even our efforts to increase defense capability should not harm the main thing. And the main thing is the foundation. And the foundation is the economy,” he concluded.