Page 131 - Russia

Russia drops charges against Prigozhin, others who took part in rebellion

Russian authorities said Tuesday they have closed a criminal investigation into the armed rebellion led by mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin, with no charges against him or any of the other participants. The Federal Security Service, or FSB, said its investigation found that those involved in the mutiny ceased activities directed at committing the crime. Over the weekend, the Kremlin pledged not to prosecute Prigozhin and his fighters after he stopped the revolt on Saturday, even though President Vladimir Putin had branded them as traitors. The charge of mounting an armed mutiny carries a punishment of up to 20 years in prison. Prigozhin escaping prosecution poses a stark contrast to how the Kremlin has been treating those staging anti-government protests. Many opposition figures in Russia have received length prison terms and are serving time in penal colonies notorious for harsh conditions. The whereabouts of Prigozhin remained a mystery Tuesday, The Kremlin has said Prigozhin w

Whereabouts, fate of Russian mercenary leader remain mystery after revolt

The whereabouts of mercenary leader Yevgeny Prigozhin remained a mystery Tuesday after Russian President Vladimir Putin once again blasted organisers of a weekend rebellion as traitors who played into the hands of Ukraine's government and its allies. The Kremlin has said Prigozhin would be exiled to neighbouring Belarus, but neither he nor the Belarusian authorities have confirmed that. An independent Belarusian military monitoring project Belaruski Hajun said a business jet that Prigozhin reportedly uses landed near Minsk on Tuesday morning. The media team for Prigozhin, the 62-year-old head of the Wagner private military contractor, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Prigozhin's short-lived insurrection over the weekend the biggest challenge to Putin's rule in more than two decades in power has rattled Russia's leadership. Putin on Monday night sought to project stability and control in a short, nationally televised address, in which he criticised the uprisi

Putin blasts Wagner traitors in speech as Prigozhin defends revolt

Putin spoke hours after Prigozhin denied that his march on the capital was a coup attempt and said he'd keep his mercenary company going despite official efforts to shut it down

Biden denies US, Nato's role in Russia mutiny, calls it struggle in system

President Joe Biden declared Monday that the United States and NATO played no part in the Wagner mercenary group's short-lived insurrection in Russia, calling the uprising and the longer-term challenges it poses for President Vladimir Putin's power a struggle within the Russian system. Biden and U.S. allies supporting Ukraine in its fight against Russia's invasion emphasized their intent to be seen as staying out of the mercenaries' stunning insurgency, the biggest threat to Putin in his two decades leading Russia. They are concerned that Putin could use accusations of Western involvement to rally Russians to his defense. Biden and administration officials declined an immediate assessment of what the 22-hour uprising by the Wagner Group might mean for Russia's war in Ukraine, for mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin or for Russia itself. We're going to keep assessing the fallout of this weekend's events and the implications from Russia and Ukraine, Biden said. But it's still too early

G7 to work closely following Russia uprising: Japanese PM Kishida

He made these remarks in reference to the rebellion that seemed to have dealt a blow to the authority of Russian President Vladimir Putin

President Putin's position is absolutely stable: Russian diplomat

President Vladimir Putin's position is absolutely stable and there is no change in overall situation in Russia, a senior Kremlin diplomat said on Monday, days after a brief rebellion against Putin by mercenary leader Yevgeny Prigozhin. Russia's special presidential representative for international cultural cooperation Mikhail Shvydkoy said Prigozhin wanted to become Russian president but it was a "mistake". Shvydkoy, currently on a visit to India, was speaking to a small group of reporters here. "The current situation in Russia is stable and the contemporary position of President Putin is also absolutely stable," he said, replying to a question. Shvydkoy, a former minister of culture, said Russians get fully united when the country faces any challenging situation. "The situation is more or less the same. Russia is totally united," he said while refusing to elaborate further. The rebellion by Prigozhin and the forces loyal to him marked the most serious challenge to President Puti

It was a protest, not an attempt to overthrow regime: Wagner leader

Putin 'reappears' as govt calls on nation to unite behind him; Prigozhin still faces mutiny case

US stocks muted as rate hike worries linger, Russia tension simmers

Tech stocks, particularly chips, put the Nasdaq out front, with the S&P 500 showing a more modest gain

From Russia, with doubt

Instability in Moscow raises issues for India

Wagner mercenary leader issues 1st audio statement since halting mutiny

Wagner head Yevgeny Prigozhin on Monday released the first audio statement since an aborted armed rebellion he staged on Saturday, defending the move as a reaction to an attack on his force that killed some of his 30 fighters. We started our march because of an injustice, Prigozhin said in an 11-minute audio. He didn't offer any details as to where he was or what his future plans are. Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu made his first public appearance since a mercenary uprising demanded his ouster, inspecting troops in Ukraine in a video released on Monday aimed at projecting a sense of order after the country's most serious political crisis in decades. But uncertainty still swirled about his fate, as well as that of rebellion leader Yevgeny Prigozhin and his private army, the impact on the war in Ukraine, and even the political future of President Vladimir Putin. A feud between Wagner Group leader Prigozhin and Russia's military brass that has festered throughout the war erupt

Amsterdam's Hermitage museum to be renamed after Russia's war on Ukriane

An Amsterdam museum that severed ties with St. Petersburg's Hermitage collection after Moscow's invasion of Ukraine last year has been renamed and on Monday announced partnerships with renowned galleries in London, Paris and Washington, D.C. Starting in September, the Hermitage Amsterdam will be called H'ART Museum. It has established partnerships with the British Museum, Centre Pompidou and the Smithsonian American Art Museum to bring art to the historic building on the banks of the Dutch capital's Amstel River. It's an exciting new step for us, a contemporary and future-proof model, museum director Annabelle Birnie said in a statement. She said the museum's programme will be multi-voiced reflecting the times we live in and will range from major art exhibitions to smaller presentations. The first major show scheduled to open midway through 2024 will be a partnership with Paris' Centre Pompidou focused on Wassily Kandinsky, the Russian-born artist who became a French citizen and

EU urges caution as mercenary revolt raises doubts on Putin's grip on Power

European Union ministers urged caution on Monday over a failed revolt by mercenary soldiers in Russia. This came after the incident raised troubling questions about Russian President Vladimir Putin's grip on power and whether Wagner group fighters might install themselves just over the border in Belarus. At the talks in Luxembourg, some EU foreign ministers likened the short-lived uprising led by Wagner Group leader Yevgeny Prigozhin to Putin unleashing Frankenstein's monster of his own creation, and to some powerful and evil spirit. But several others, concerned that they might be seen to be offering support, were at pains to point out that the revolt remains an internal Russian affair, and that many questions remain unanswered, including Prigozhin's precise whereabouts and whether he may be taking troops with him. Most seemed to agree that the incident will have security implications for Europe and that the important thing is to help Ukraine take advantage of the situation. We a

A crude shock from Moscow: Testing times for India's energy security

Russia now accounts for a little less than half of India's oil imports but the current political instability raises serious questions about the long-term reliability of supply

European natural gas prices rise as Russian mutiny adds to supply fear

The uncertainty of what could happen in the coming weeks within Russia itself, rather than within Ukraine, is pushing gas higher

Russian minister Shoigu makes 1st public appearance since mercenary revolt

Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu made his first public appearance since a mercenary uprising demanded his ouster, inspecting troops in Ukraine Monday in a video released by his ministry. He's the first of three powerful Russian leaders whose diverging interests led to the Wagner Group occupying a Russian city and marching on the capital to be seen since the revolt ended Saturday. Russian President Vladimir Putin and Wagner Group chief Yevgeny Prigozhin have made no public statements since then. Moscow Mayor Sergey Sobyanin announced an end to the counter-terrorism regime imposed on the capital Saturday, during which troops with machine guns patrolled the streets and tore up roads leading into the city. The Defence Ministry released a video showing Shoigu flying in a helicopter and then attending a meeting with military officers at a military headquarters in Ukraine, showing the minister for the first time since Prigozhin declared a march of justice to oust the defence minister

Putin weakened by Wagner Group mutiny, Ukraine missed opportunity

On Friday June 23 2023, Prigozhin ordered 25,000 of his troops on to a march for justice, which duly set out to confront the Russian president in Moscow

With Russia revolt over, direction of Ukraine war remain uncertain

The rebellious mercenary soldiers who briefly took over a Russian military headquarters on an ominous march toward Moscow were gone Sunday, but the short-lived revolt has weakened President Vladimir Putin just as his forces are facing a fierce counteroffensive in Ukraine. Under terms of the agreement that ended the crisis, Yevgeny Prigozhin, who led his Wagner troops in the failed uprising, will go into exile in Belarus but will not face prosecution. But it was unclear what would ultimately happen to him and his forces. Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, who brokered the deal, released few details. Neither Prigozhin nor Putin has been heard from, and top Russian military leaders have also remained silent. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken described the weekend's events as extraordinary, recalling that 16 months ago Putin appeared poised to seize the capital of Ukraine and now he has had to defend Moscow from forces led by his onetime protege. I think we've seen more ..

Stocks to Watch: IndusInd Bank, Ipca Lab, Infosys, ICICI Securities, RVNL

Stocks to Watch on June 26, 2023: The Hinduja Group is in talks to invest Rs 10,000 crore to hike its stake in IndusInd Bank, as per media reports

Australia dismisses Russia's bid for injunction to stop embassy's eviction

Australia's highest court on Monday dismissed Russia's application for an injunction that would have prevented Moscow's embassy being evicted from a site in the national capital Canberra. In dismissing the application, High Court Justice Jayne Jagot described Russia's challenge on constitutional grounds to a law terminating the lease as weak and difficult to understand. Parliament passed emergency legislation on June 15 that terminated Russia's lease on the largely empty block on security grounds because the new embassy would have been too close to Parliament House. Russia's lawyer Elliot Hyde had argued that the Ambassador Alexey Pavlovsky would not have confidence in the integrity and security of a consular building already on the site if the embassy was not allowed to maintain possession until the challenge to the validity of the lease termination was decided. Elliot said a man who has been living on the site in a portable cabin at least since last week was a security guard. The

Russian air strikes kill 9 in Syria's Idlib in one of the deadliest attacks

The attack on Jisr al-Shughur on Sunday is the deadliest to have occurred in northwest Syria so far in 2023, reported CNN