EXCLUSIVE: Wagner Group boss Prigozhin smiles & takes selfies as he’s forced into ‘exile’ after placing Russia on brink of collapse

WAGNER Group boss Yevgeny Prigozhin was pictured grinning and taking selfies with fans as he was apparently forced into “exile”.

The 62-year-old did not look anything like a man who had been defeated as he returned to his wannabe coup’s base of operations in Rostov-on-Don, Russia…CONTINUE READING

Wagner mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin leaves RostovCredit: Reuters

Prigozhin was ferried round in the back of a black 4×4Credit: Reuters

He stopped to take selfies with localsCredit: AP

Russians applauded as the Wagner Group paraded through the townCredit: Getty

Locals posed for pictures with the Wagner Group’s tanksCredit: Getty

Blood-thirsty mercenary boss Priogzhin appeared more like a rockstar as he was ferried through the streets in the back of a black 4×4 as he took snaps with locals.

One man even reached in and shook his hand – sparking a big snarling smile from the warlord, once known as “Putin’s chef”.

Other residents posed for pictures with Wagner Group tanks emblazoned with red “Z” symbols as the military force loaded up….CONTINUE READING

And they were seen applauding as the mercenary company had a mini-parade through the streets of the city they seized just hours before.

Prigozhin staged the largest threat to Putin’s rule in decades when he launched an open rebellion and sent his 25,000 men marching on Moscow.

It looked as if the Russian regime’s life expectancy could be measured in just hours as a convoy of trucks and military gear got within 120 miles of the Kremlin.

And then just as suddenly as the rebellion began, it ended and Prigozhin claimed he was retreating to Belarus.

Russia insisted they had dropped all criminal charges against him – and he and his men were free to leave.

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The details of the “deal” remain unclear – and observers have warned this crisis is far from over.

It raises questions about Putin’s grip on power – going from blasting Priogzhin for “treason” to then letting him go in an astonishing show of weakness.

But one thing is for sure – Prigozhin does not look like a man who has been beaten.

An “anti-terrorist operation regime” remains in place in Moscow on Sunday, with enhanced security and curbs on residents’ freedoms.

Tensions remain high across Russia after the attempted coup.

Following his celebratory parade, Prigozhin’s whereabouts remain unknown on Sunday after he was last seen in Rostov-on-Don.

The billionaire runs the Wagner Group mercenary company and was once a close ally of Putin until they fell out over the war in Ukraine.

He rose to power through the ranks in the Kremlin – originally being a caterer who supplied food for the military and who served Putin and other world leaders at state banquets.

His favour with Vlad saw him essentially run “Putin’s private army” – the Wagner Group.

But their relationship has soured in the last 17 months since the invasion of Ukraine.

Prigozhin had vowed to “punish” Russia after he blamed the Kremlin for a deadly missile attack on one of his training camps in the eastern Ukrainian city of Bakhmut.

The warlord – a former pal of Putin’s – said he was ready to oust Russia’s military leaders as he turned on the top brass in Moscow.

Putin raged “this is treason” in an astonishing early morning TV address to the nation which showed he wasn’t backing down.

Within hours of a 400-vehicle convoy rolling onto Russian soil from Ukraine, Wagner troops seized control of Russia’s regional military HQ in Rostov-on-Don.

They rode heavy military machinery, tanks and trucks.

Prigozhin bragged his men — believed to be better equipped than the Russian army — did not need to fire a single shot as they took control of the HQ.

He said: “The border guards greeted us and hugged our fighters. If anyone gets in our way, we will destroy everything.

“We are going all the way.”

Moscow looked like it was preparing for battle, with temporary road blocks and machine gun nests set up.

But then in an astonishing turnaround with his forces some 120 miles from Moscow, Prigozhin claimed he was ready to back down.

In an audio message to his troops, he ordered them to return to their bases to “avoid bloodshed”.

“We’re turning around our convoys and going in the opposite direction,” he said in a voice message published by his Concord firm.

Putin’s pal Belarusian president Alexander Lukashenko claimed he had brokered a deal with the Wagner Group.

The terms of the deal appeared to be confirmed by the Kremlin after the announcement that Prigozhin would leave for Belarus and would not face charges over the attempted coup.

While the details of the deal remain unclear, it’s understood that it was decided some Wagner fighters will be absorbed into the Russian military.

Soldiers posed as they prepared to pull out of RostovCredit: AP
People gathered to bid farewell to the Wagner GroupCredit: Reuters
Soldiers posed as they rode through the streets of RostovCredit: Reuters
Prigozhin appeared to get a hero’s welcome in RostovCredit: Reuters
Members of the Wagner Group gesture and smileCredit: Getty
Prigozhin took pictures with fans in RostovCredit: Reuters

Fighters who took part alongside him would not be prosecuted while Wagner troops who did not march would sign contracts with the defence ministry, it said.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said a deal was struck “avoiding bloodshed, internal confrontation, and clashes with unpredictable results was the highest goal”.

He described the drama as “fairly difficult” and “full of tragic events”.

It is unclear if Prigozhin’s demands were met after he asked for the defence minister Sergei Shoigu and chief of the general staff Valery Gerasimov to be fired.

Videos showed forces in Rostov cheering after the apparent de-escalation while residents shouted support for the mercenary group.

It could now prove to be a difficult few days for Putin as he desperately tries to cling to power and save his strong-man image.

Defence Select Committee chair Tobias Ellwood MP told The Sun on Sunday: “In his 23 years in power, Putin has never been challenged like this.

“When Kremlin politics turn it happens very quickly.”

Experts also feared this may not be the end of the rebellion after a dramatic 24 hours for the Kremlin.

“Putin’s No.1 Enemy” Bill Browder told The Sun he did not believe the peace deal was legitimate.

“This is just the beginning,” he warned.

Russia has since claimed that at least 15 were killed during the mutiny – while a number of helicopters were shot down.

The Kremlin insisted Putin was still working in Moscow. But Leonid Nevzlin, a long-time foe, claimed he’d fled to his country residence with associates. Nevzlin said: “The dictator is in a panic.”

In his Telegram address, President Zelensky said he was sure the tyrant was “no longer in Moscow.”

He said: “The man from the Kremlin is obviously very afraid and probably hiding somewhere, not showing himself.”

While infighting ensued in Moscow, Ukraine said it was able to advance along its eastern front and make gains near Bakhmut – an area previously occupied by Wagner forces.

Mr Browder, a former financier who worked in Russia and has since been taking on Putin, said he didn’t believe the crisis was over.

“There’s no way to de-escalate because Putin can’t forgive somebody who has disrespected him in such a powerful way,” he told The Sun.

“Putin already tried to kill Prigozhin, and he understands they’ll probably try it again. I think nobody trusts anyone there now.”

“Let’s just say that if this thing does de-escalate – there’s gonna be a massive purge of the Kremlin like we’ve never seen before.

“Putin is going to go after everybody he distrusts in every possible way and it’s going to be a total disaster for all people inside the establishment as Putin tests their loyalty because this is the scariest thing that has ever happened to Putin.”

“They’ve emptied out the prisons, and now they’re going to fill them up with perceived enemies of the regime.”

Colonel Hamish de Bretton Gordon previously told The Sun that he thought warlord Yevgeny Prigozhin could march on Moscow in a “Roman-style” rebellion.

His chilling prediction now seems to be coming true.

“The next 24 to 48 hours will be crucial, we could well see the implosion of Putin,” said the retired Colonel today.

“It is sort of like Caesar being stabbed in the back by those he thought were fighting for him.”

And he added there is a risk of “nuclear Armageddon” if Russia starts to fall to pieces and descend into chaos.

“Western leaders, particularly the UK and US, can sit back and watch the Russians defeat themselves, but we must make sure that there is no chance that nuclear escalation.”

Russia’s elites are now like “scorpions trying to kill each other,” said the British army officer, adding Putin is likely “on the phone to Tehran or North Korea”.

Michael McFaul, a former US ambassador to Russia, said on Twitter that Russia was now facing a “civil war”.

He branded the Wagner rebellion as the “biggest crisis” Vlad has ever faced. “The fight is now on.”

In comments to BBC Radio 4, he added: “Putin has a major crisis on his hands – the biggest crisis he has ever faced in his 23 years of power.”

McFaul said he was “struck” by the lack of resistance Prigozhin faced from the Russian army as he seized both Restov and Voronezh “without a fight”.

He believes it suggests there’s a swathe of Putin’s forces who will not be willing to meet Prigozhin in battle.

General Sir Richard Barrons, former head of Joint Forces Command, told The Sun that the uprising by the mercenary company will deal a major “psychological blow” to Putin.

He explained that Wagner’s boss has been raging against the Kremlin military leaders over lack of support and feels angry over Russian losses around Bakhmut.

Wagner claimed victory in the Ukrainian city after one year of some of the bloodiest fighting in the war so far – only for some of the gains to be given up when they withdrew.