President Vladimir Putin vowed on Saturday to protect Russia against an armed rebellion announced by Yevgeny Prigozhin, the leader of the Russian Wagner paramilitary group, whom Putin denounced as a traitor to the country.
In a televised address to the nation, Putin called on those involved in the rebellion to cease participation in armed conflict, pledging to defend “the motherland.”
“All those who prepared the rebellion will suffer inevitable punishment. The armed forces and other government agencies have received the necessary orders,” Putin said.
Yevgeny Prigozhin, the chief and founder of the private military contractor Wagner, posted a video of himself in the key city of Rostov-on-Don at the Russian military headquarters that oversees the fighting in Ukraine on Saturday morning local time. He said that a large militia had crossed the border from Ukraine and is now occupying all the military installations across the key Russian city of Rostov-on-Don, including its airfield….