[BREAKING NEWS] Russia ‘coup’: Putin, Wagner boss make deal

Wagner’s rebellious mercenary leader will move to Belarus under the terms of a truce agreed with President Putin, the Kremlin said last night.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Belarus President Lukashenko had offered to mediate, with Putin’s agreement because he had known Prigozhin personally for about 20 years. Minsk has been a key ally for Putin in his war with Ukraine.

As part of the deal, the criminal charges against Prigozhin for leading the “armed coup” will be dropped.

Wagner troops that took part in the rebellion would similarly be spared from prosecution, Mr Peskov said.

Earlier yesterday, Prigozhin ordered his fighters to halt their march on Moscow and return to their bases in a surprise turnaround.

As columns of mercenaries appeared to be moving with lightning speed towards Moscow, Russian President Vladimir Putin vowed to strike back hard against Yevgeny Prigozhin, leader of the mercenary Wagner Group, who launched an extraordinary assault on his own government.

In remarks yesterday morning from the Kremlin, Putin denounced Prigozhin’s “criminal adventure” as an “armed mutiny” that would be met with a response from regular Russian troops.