Wagner private army stands down coup attempt on Moscow after talks with Kremlin
24 June 2023, 18:43 | Updated: 24 June 2023, 20:21
Russian private army Wagner is standing down its attempted coup on the Kremlin after talks with Vladimir Putin.
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The mercenary group reportedly had 5,000 soldiers and tanks on their way to Moscow after taking control of southern cities Voronezh and Rostov.
In a voice note shared via the group's Telegram channel, chief Yevgeny Prigozhin said: "They were going to dismantle PMC Wagner. We came out on 23 June to the March of Justice.
"In a day, we walked to nearly 200km away from Moscow. In this time, we did not spill a single drop of blood of our fighters. Now, the moment has come when blood may spill.
"That’s why, understanding the responsibility for spilling Russian blood on one of the sides, we are turning back our convoys and going back to field camps according to the plan."
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The shock U-turn came hours after Putin's plane was seen making a journey from the capital toward St Petersburg, data from tracker FlightRadar showed.
It then disappeared from the radar around 100 miles from Putin's official residence.
But a Kremlin spokesperson insisted Putin remains in his Moscow office.
Dmitry Peskov told Russian state news agency TASS: "Putin is working at the Kremlin."
Wagner vehicles were spotted travelling towards Moscow via motorways surrounding the city.
Around 5,000 Wagner soldiers were also marching on the capital, a source close to Wagner's leadership told Reuters.
Russian state forces fired on Wagner vehicles but were unable to slow their advance from southern cities Voronezh and Rostov.
Moscow's mayor had earlier told residents in the capital not to go to work on Monday "to minimise risks".
Putin ally Sergei Sobyanin wrote via Telegram: "A counter-terrorist operation regime has been declared in Moscow. The situation is difficult.
"I ask you to refrain from traveling around the city as much as possible.
"City services are on high alert."
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