Yevgeny Prigozhin was killed today as a “gift from the Ukrainian secret service to Zelenskyy” to mark the country’s Independence Day, Vladimir Putin’s former spokesman claimed.
Sergei Markov, a staunch supporter of the Russian president and a former close adviser, said it was “perfectly clear that Prigozhin [was] Killed by [the] Ukrainian Secret Service”, the night before Ukraine
The Wagner boss is believed to have died after a plane crash widely believed, contrary to Markov’s claims, to be a Kremlin-ordered assassination that also killed senior officers of his private military two months after the group’s attempted insurgency.
After blaming the Ukrainian secret service for Prigozhin’s death, Markov today described him as a “Russian hero,” even though the head of the Wagner mercenary group launched an attempted coup in the country just two months ago.
The former Kremlin adviser, who now parrots Russian propaganda at Moscow State University, claimed the evidence was “very clear”.
Eyewitness footage of the crash site of a plane linked to Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigozhin near Kuzhenkino, Russia, Wednesday
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy reacts during a joint press conference with Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis on Monday
Russian mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin (pictured) and senior officers of his private military were believed to have been killed in a plane crash near Kuzhenkino, Russia, on Wednesday
In an interview on BBC Radio 4’s Today program on Thursday morning, Markov addressed the death, claiming that Kiev will “celebrate” the death and be “proud” of the murder.
He said the evidence was very clear but provided no justification for his argument other than the claims made by Russian propaganda television.
Markov added that he had “five percent doubt” that Progozhin was dead after the plane crash. Rescuers quickly found all ten bodies of the passengers registered for the flight, and Russian media quoted sources from Prigozhin’s private military company Wagner as confirming his death.
The former Kremlin adviser claimed Progozhin’s confirmed death was “bad news” for Russia and hailed the mercenary boss-turned gastro-host as “heroes of Russia and heroes of the Donetsk people”.
This comes as Putin has criticized his once-trusted ally for the June coup attempt, which is internationally seen as humiliating for the Kremlin.
After the weakened uprising, Putin, without naming Prighosin, said the organizers of the uprising had been “treacherous” and had “betrayed their country and their people.”
“He was the founder and leader of the best private military group,” claimed Markov, who fought “neo-Nazis” — an argument Russia consistently uses to justify the brutal bloodshed in Ukraine.
Ukrainian President Zelenskyy later confirmed that he was not involved in the reported death of Prigozhin.
“We had nothing to do with it.” “Everyone knows who has something to do with it,” Zelenskyi told reporters, Interfax-Ukraine news agency reported.
Sergei Markov (pictured), who is a staunch supporter of the Russian president and formerly a close adviser, said it was “perfectly clear that Prigozhin [was] Killed by [the] Ukrainian Secret Service”
Vladimir Putin delivers a speech during a ceremony unveiling the first phase of the monument to the Battle of Kursk in the settlement of Ponyri, Kursk region, Russia on Wednesday
The death comes as no surprise to Western officials, who have long expected Prigozhin to be killed by Putin, despite the Russian president’s pledge to drop the charges in a deal that ended the June 23-24 mutiny.
“I don’t know exactly what happened, but I’m not surprised,” said US President Joe Biden. “Not much happens in Russia that Putin isn’t behind.”
Prigozhin supporters claimed on channels of the pro-Wagner messaging app that the plane was shot down on purpose and offered different theories about it.
Police cordoned off the field where the plane crashed while investigators investigated the site. Vehicles were seen pulling up to take the allegedly badly charred bodies for forensic examination.
Lights in the shape of a large cross were switched on at Wagner’s headquarters in St. Petersburg. Prigozhin’s supporters brought flowers to the building at an improvised memorial.
While countless theories about the events abounded, most observers viewed Prigozhin’s death as Putin’s punishment for the most serious challenge to his authority during his 23-year rule.
Tatiana Stanovaya, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center, said on Telegram, “No matter what caused the plane crash, everyone will see it as an act of revenge and retaliation” by the Kremlin, and “the Kremlin wouldn’t really do that.” Get in the way.’
“From the point of view of Putin, as well as the security forces and the military, Prigozhin’s death must be a lesson for all potential supporters,” Stanovaya said in a Telegram post.