‘Any blackmail is doomed to failure,’ defiant Putin warns after attempted rebellion
Vladimir Putin has warned “any blackmail is doomed to failure” – days after an attempted rebellion led by Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigozhin.
The Russian president – speaking to the nation from the Kremlin on Monday night – condemned the “criminal acts” orchestrated by Prigozhin’s troops.
But Putin insisted that any armed rebellion would have been suppressed – and steps were immediately taken to “neutralise the threat that had arisen.
Reaction to Putin’s statement – live updates
Wagner troops reportedly advanced north to 120 miles (200km) from Moscow until their convoy turned back
Putin thanked the Russian public for its “support, patriotism and solidarity” – and said there had been a coming together that had “saved” the country.
“Virtually the entirety of Russian society, all of them, have been united in the face of the responsibility to defend the homeland,” Putin claimed.
He expressed gratitude to Belarus’s president Alexander Lukashenko for helping to bring the crisis to a “peaceful resolution”.
The Russian leader said that most Wagner mercenaries were “patriots” – and claimed they had been encouraged by organisers of the plot “to fight against their compatriots”.
He added: “By turning back [from their march on Moscow], they avoided further bloodshed. We have to think about the people who actually decided to take this step, which would have had tragic and devastating consequences for Russia as a whole.
“I would like to thank those commanders and soldiers of the Wagner private company who took the right decision to stop and go back, and prevent bloodshed.”
Read more:
Russia civil unrest triggered by Wagner mercenary mutiny offers hope to Ukrainians
The former hot dog seller and thug who became Wagner boss at centre of mutiny
Prigozhin’s rebellion triggers Putin’s most serious domestic crisis since his invasion of Ukraine
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What is next for Russia?
‘Revenge for failure’
He further claimed that “neo-Nazis in Kyiv and the West” had wanted Russian soldiers to kill each other and divide its society.
During the short, five-minute address, Putin claimed Ukraine had been involved in the weekend’s events and called the revolt “revenge for their failure at the front – but they slipped up, they made a mistake”.
Towards the end of his speech, Putin directly addressed the mercenaries and said they were now faced with a choice – either to continue serving the Russian military by entering into a contract with the ministry of defence, or they could return home to their families.
He said: “It is the choice of each of you, a choice of the warriors of Russia who have acknowledged their fault.”
Prigozhin said earlier on Monday that he ordered his fighters to halt their advance on Moscow because he “did not want to shed Russian blood” and never intended to overthrow the government.
He also said Lukashenko in Belarus had “extended his hand and offered to find solutions for the further operation of Wagner in a legitimate jurisdiction”.
But Prigozhin did not offer any details about where he was, or what his future plans are.
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Prigozhin ‘didn’t want to shed Russian blood’
It comes after the Kremlin said it had made a deal for the Wagner leader to move to Belarus and receive amnesty, along with his troops.
Meanwhile, a top White House official has denied that the US had any involvement in Saturday’s rebellion – and said it had “good, direct communication with the Russians over the weekend”.
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‘We had nothing to do with it’
US President Joe Biden also said earlier that it was important leaders gave Putin “no excuse” to blame the mutiny on the West or NATO.
“We made it clear we were not involved,” the president said. “We had nothing to do with it.
“This was part of a struggle within the Russian system.”
US president-elect Donald Trump has suggested Israel and Hamas could agree a Gaza ceasefire by the end of the week.
Talks between Israeli and Hamas representatives resumed in the Qatari capital Doha yesterday, after US President Joe Biden indicated a deal to stop the fighting was “on the brink” on Monday.
A draft agreement has been sent to both sides. It includes provisions for the release of hostages and a phased Israeli troop withdrawal from Gaza.
Qatar says Israel and Hamas are at their “closest point” yet to a ceasefire deal.
Two Hamas officials said the group has accepted the draft agreement, with Israel still considering the deal.
An Israeli official said a deal is close but “we are not there” yet.
More than 46,500 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza since Israel launched its ground offensive in the aftermath of the 7 October attacks, according to the territory’s Hamas-run health ministry.
Read more:
What’s in the proposed deal?
Palestinians inspect the site of an Israeli strike on beachfront cafe in Deir al Balah. Pic: Reuters
Biden hails possibility of agreement
President Biden said it would include a hostage release deal and a “surge” of aid to Palestinians, in his final foreign policy speech as president.
“So many innocent people have been killed, so many communities have been destroyed. Palestinian people deserve peace,” he said.
“The deal would free the hostages, halt the fighting, provide security to Israel, and allow us to significantly surge humanitarian assistance to the Palestinians who suffered terribly in this war that Hamas started.”
Qatari mediators have sent Israel and Hamas a draft proposal for an agreement to halt the fighting.
Analysis:
Deal might be close, but there are many unanswered questions
Pic: Reuters
Trump: ‘We’re very close’
President-elect Donald Trump has also discussed a possible peace deal during a phone interview with the Newsmax channel.
“We’re very close to getting it done and they have to get it done,” he said.
“If they don’t get it done, there’s going to be a lot of trouble out there, a lot of trouble, like they have never seen before.
“And they will get it done. And I understand there’s been a handshake and they’re getting it finished and maybe by the end of the week. But it has to take place, it has to take place.”
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Donald Trump’s inauguration 2.0
Pic: AP
Israeli official: Former Hamas leader held up deal
Speaking on Tuesday as negotiations resumed in Qatar, an anonymous Israeli official said that an agreement was “close, but we are not there”.
They accused Hamas of previously “dictating, not negotiating” but said this has changed in the last few weeks.
“Yahya Sinwar was the main obstacle for a deal,” they added.
Sinwar, believed to be the mastermind of the 7 October attacks, led Hamas following the assassination of his predecessor but was himself killed in October last year.
Under Sinwar, the Israeli official claimed, Hamas was “not in a rush” to bring a hostage deal but this has changed since his death and since the IDF “started to dismantle the Shia axis”.
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Biden: ‘Never, never, never, ever give up’
Iran ‘weaker than it’s been in decades’
Yesterday, President Biden also hailed Washington’s support for Israel during two Iranian attacks in 2024.
“All told, Iran is weaker than it’s been in decades,” the president said.
Mr Biden claimed America’s adversaries were weaker than when he took office four years ago and that the US was “winning the worldwide competition”.
“Compared to four years ago, America is stronger, our alliances are stronger, our adversaries and competitors are
weaker,” he said.
“We have not gone to war to make these things happen.”
The US president is expected to give a farewell address on Wednesday.
A draft ceasefire deal on the table between Israel and Hamas would see 33 hostages set free and a phased withdrawal of IDF forces from parts of Gaza.
President Joe Biden said an agreement to stop the fighting was “on the brink” and high level negotiations between the two sides resumed in Qatar on Tuesday.
The deal would see a number of things happen in a first stage, with negotiations for the second stage beginning in the third week of the ceasefire.
It would also allow a surge in humanitarian aid into Gaza, which has been devastated by more than a year of war.
Details of what the draft proposal entails have been emerging on Tuesday, reported by Israeli and Palestinian officials.
Relatives and supporters of Israeli hostages hold photos of their loved ones during a protest on 8 January. Pic: AP
Hostages to be returned
In the first stage of the potential ceasefire, 33 hostages would be set free.
These include women (including female soldiers), children, men over the age of 50, wounded and sick.
Israel believes most of these hostages are alive but there has not been any official confirmation from Hamas.
In return for the release of the hostages, Israel would free more than 1,000 Palestinian prisoners and detainees.
People serving long sentences for deadly attacks would be included in this but Hamas fighters who took part in the 7 October attack would not be released.
An arrangement to prevent Palestinian “terrorists” from going back to the West Bank would be included in the deal, an anonymous Israeli official said.
Read more:
A timeline of events since the 7 October attacks
The hostages who still haven’t returned home
Smoke billows as buildings lie in ruin in Beit Hanoun in Gaza. Pic: Reuters
Phased Israeli withdrawal from Gaza
The agreement also includes a phased withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza, with IDF troops remaining in the border perimeter to defend Israeli border towns and villages.
Security arrangements would be implemented at the Philadelphi corridor – a narrow strip of land that runs along the border between Egypt and Gaza – with Israel withdrawing from parts of it after the first few days of the deal.
The Rafah Crossing between Egypt and Gaza would start to work gradually to allow the crossing of people who are sick and other humanitarian cases out of Gaza for treatment.
Unarmed North Gaza residents would be allowed to return to their homes, with a mechanism introduced to ensure no weapons are moved there.
“We will not leave the Gaza Strip until all our hostages are back home,” the Israeli official said.
What will happen to Gaza in the future?
There is less detail about the future of Gaza – from how it will be governed, to any guarantees that this agreement will bring a permanent end to the war.
“The only thing that can answer for now is that we are ready for a ceasefire,” the Israeli official said.
“This is a long ceasefire and the deal that is being discussed right now is for a long one. There is a big price for releasing the hostages and we are ready to pay this price.”
The international community has said Gaza must be run by Palestinians, but there has not been a consensus about how this should be done – and the draft ceasefire agreement does not seem to address this either.
In the past, Israel has said it will not end the war leaving Hamas in power. It also previously rejected the possibility of the Palestinian Authority, which exercises limited governing powers in the West Bank, from taking over the administration of Gaza.
Since the beginning of its military campaign in Gaza, Israel has also said it would retain security control over the territory after the fighting ends.
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