Resonance of Prigozhin's failed march is more important than attempt to seize Moscow - military expert Zgurets

He shared his opinions with Espreso TV.

"Prigozhin's fate is bleak, as is the fate of Wagner PMC. Despite the security guarantees, there is a real threat to Prigozhin. The physical elimination of Prigozhin and his group will be decided by Shoigu and Gerasimov if they remain in office. By the way, Putin will not remove them, despite the fact that Shoigu has demonstrated ineptitude even in protecting the road to Moscow. And this is a sign that there are different groups within the Russian Defense Ministry," Zgurets emphasized.

According to the expert, the tightening of control measures in Russia will have an impact on the Wagner PMC, which will cease to exist.

"This is an example of Russia finishing off its own. There is a crack in the Russian power bloc. Disagreements will begin to grow between the groups that support Prigozhin and those who hold a different position. The resonance effect of Prigozhin's failed march is more important than the attempt to seize Moscow. Prigozhin tried to save his life, but the threat to his life remains," Zgurets added.

Prigozhin's mutiny in Russia

For several months, there has been a conflict between Yevgeny Prigozhin, the financier of Wagner PMC, and the Russian Ministry of Defense. However, the situation escalated quickly on the evening of June 23.

Allegedly, Russian troops launched a missile attack on the Wagner base. Yevgeny Prigozhin, the leader of the Wagner PMC, announced a "march of justice" and stated that 25,000 mercenaries were heading to Moscow after the Russian leadership refused to hand over Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov.

On Saturday, June 24, in addition to Rostov-on-Don, where they initially gathered around the headquarters of the Southern Military District, the Wagner group also took control of Voronezh. Their convoys, which had diverted from the Ukrainian border, were moving towards Moscow. Military aircraft and artillery under Shoigu's control attempted to stop them. The units of Wagner PMC were last spotted in the Lipetsk region. In Moscow itself, defensive positions were established, trenches were dug, and all security forces were mobilized.

However, on the evening of June 24, the press service of the self-proclaimed president of Belarus Lukashenko published a statement indicating that the head of the PMC Wagner was willing to halt the movement of the military columns and negotiate with the Kremlin. Allegedly, Prigozhin agreed to this during a conversation with Lukashenko. 

Instead, Prigozhin announced that the Wagner group had stopped their advance and returned to their field camps before reaching 200 km from Moscow. He stated, "In a day, we traveled without reaching 200 km to Moscow. During this time, no blood was shed. However, the moment may come when blood will be spilled. Therefore, taking full responsibility, we are turning our columns around and heading back to the field camps as planned."

Later, Prigozhin and his fighters left the headquarters of the Southern Military District in Russia. Russian dictator Vladimir Putin promised that Prigozhin would be allowed to go to Belarus, and Russia would drop the criminal charges against him.