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Kremlin calls accusations it killed Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigozhin an 'absolute lie'

The Kremlin also said it was impossible to say whether Russian President Vladimir Putin would attend the funeral of Wagner mercenary boss Yevgeny Prigozhin.

credit: REUTERS/Anastasia Barashkova

credit: REUTERS/Anastasia Barashkova

Russian businessman Yevgeny Prigozhin looks on before a meeting of Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping with representatives of civic organisations, business and media communities at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, July 4, 2017. (photo credit: REUTERS/SERGEI ILNITSKY/POOL/FILE PHOTO)
Russian businessman Yevgeny Prigozhin looks on before a meeting of Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping with representatives of civic organisations, business and media communities at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, July 4, 2017.
(photo credit: REUTERS/SERGEI ILNITSKY/POOL/FILE PHOTO)
 

The Kremlin said on Friday that Western suggestions that Wagner mercenary boss Yevgeny Prigozhin had been killed on its orders were an "absolute lie" and declined to definitively confirm his death, citing the need to wait for test results.

President Vladimir Putin on Thursday sent his condolences to Prigozhin's family, breaking his silence after the mercenary leader's plane crashed on Wednesday evening with no survivors two months after he led a mutiny against army chiefs.

Putin cited "preliminary information" as indicating that Prigozhin and his top associates in the Wagner mercenary group had been killed.

Russian investigators have opened a probe into what happened, but have not yet said what they suspect caused the plane to suddenly fall from the sky northwest of Moscow.

Nor have they officially confirmed the identities of the 10 bodies recovered from the wreckage.
 

A view shows a portrait of Wagner mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin at a makeshift memorial near former PMC Wagner Centre in Saint Petersburg, Russia August 24, 2023. (credit: REUTERS/Anastasia Barashkova)
A view shows a portrait of Wagner mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin at a makeshift memorial near former PMC Wagner Centre in Saint Petersburg, Russia August 24, 2023. (credit: REUTERS/Anastasia Barashkova)


Western politicians and commentators have suggested that Putin ordered Prigozhin killed to punish him for launching a failed June 23-34 mutiny against the top brass which represented the biggest challenge to Putin's rule yet.

Addressing the speculation around Prigozhin's death

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the accusation and many others like it were false.

"There is now a great deal of speculation surrounding this plane crash and the tragic deaths of the plane's passengers, including Yevgeny Prigozhin. Of course, in the West, all this speculation is presented from a well-known angle," Peskov told reporters.

"All of this is an absolute lie, and here, when covering this issue, it is necessary to base yourself on facts. There are not many facts yet. They need to be established in the course of investigative actions."

Peskov said that it was important to wait for the results of various tests as well as the outcome of the investigation.

He said Putin had not met Prigozhin recently.

Author: Editors Desk

Source: The Jerusalem Post

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