Putin promises to "deal with" Prigozhin's company: suspects embezzlement of Russian budget
Vladimir Putin, President of Russia, suspected that Concord, a company owned by Yevgeniy Prigozhin, chief of the Wagner Private Military Company (PMC), could have been embezzling state money.
Source: video of Putin in the Kremlin allegedly at the meeting with the military who deterred the assault of the Wagner PMC, as reported by the Russian media
Details: Putin claimed that the Concord company, owned by the leader of Wagner Group, supplies the Russian army with food via Joint Stock Company Voentorg. In a year, Concord earned 80 billion roubles [almost $940 million – ed.] on state orders.
Putin remarked that the participation of the Wagner PMC in the war against Ukraine is exclusively financed from the state budget of Russia. That same year, the Wagner Group received over a billion US dollars from the state.
Quote: "The state fully finances [the Wagner PMC – ed.], while a part of this whole group [of companies owned by Prigozhin – ed.], the Concord company, earned 80 billion roubles. I hope nothing was stolen, or, at least, not so much. We will certainly deal with all this."
Background:
- On the evening of 23 June, Wagner Group leader Yevgeny Prigozhin claimed that the regular Russian army had launched a missile strike on the Wagner mercenaries’ rear camps. He therefore deployed 25,000 of his mercenaries "to restore justice".
- Prigozhin claimed that his forces had taken control of military facilities in Rostov-on-Don, including the air base, and were heading "to Moscow" and that his soldiers had shot down three Russian helicopters. Wagner mercenaries also seized military facilities in the Russian city of Voronezh.
- In an emergency address on 24 June, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that Russia was "fighting for survival" and that attempts were being made to "organise a rebellion" in the country.
- On Saturday evening, after a conversation with Alexander Lukashenko, the self-proclaimed president of Belarus, Prigozhin announced that his mercenaries were turning their convoys around and going back to set up field camps. Later, it was reported that the criminal case against Prigozhin is to be closed and he will "go to Belarus".
- Russian pro-war media and Telegram channels are claiming that Wagner mercenaries have shot down the Il-22M aircraft (control point) and six helicopters of the Russian army, and 13 to 20 people died as a result of the mutiny by Wagner Group fighters. In addition to this, 19 houses and roads have been damaged as a result of the march of Prigozhin’s troops.
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