MINSK, Belarus — The mystery surrounding the fate of the Russian mercenary rebel Wagner Group deepened on Thursday when the Belarusian leader said the fighters and their leader, Yevgeny Prigozhin, were not in his country despite the Kremlin saying they were indeed they had been exiled there after leaving Moscow.
Prigozhin plunged Russia into turmoil days ago after launching his mutiny against Kremlin military leaders, setting up a direct confrontation with President Vladimir Putin.
The Wagner leader said thousands of his fighters were marching on Moscow, only to return after an apparent deal brokered by Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko that would see them leave Russia for their neighboring ally.
Lukashenko said last week that Prigozhin was in Belarus. Yet he told a rare news conference on Thursday that Prigozhin was still in Russia, in his hometown of St. Petersburg, despite the fact that the Kremlin effectively said he had been banished.
His mercenaries were still in their “permanent camps” on Russian-controlled territory, Lukashenko added, saying he was still waiting for the Kremlin to ask him to host the fighters.
Speaking at a global media briefing at the Minsk presidential palace on Thursday morning, he brushed aside the concerns of Belarusians who worry about the implications of having thousands of members of the armed mercenary group inside its borders.
“It doesn’t matter to me at all and I’m not worried that a certain number of these fighters will be deployed here,” said Lukashenko, who has portrayed himself as some sort of negotiator in the Prigozhin-Putin deal.
“The main condition” of Wagner’s potential deployment, he added, “is that if we need to use this unit for the defense of the state, it will be used immediately. Their expertise will be in demand.”
This is a developing story. Please check for updates.
Keir Simmons reported from Minsk, Belarus, and Alexander Smith reported from London.
