Wagner chief calls off march of mercenaries on Moscow 'to avoid shedding Russian blood'
manchestereveningnews.co.ukThe head of the Wagner force said he has ordered his mercenaries to halt their march on Moscow and retreat to their field camps in Ukraine to avoid shedding Russian blood.
The private military company belongs to Yevgeny Prigozhin, a former close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin. Mr Prigozhin's announcement appeared to defuse a growing crisis as Moscow braced for the arrival of the private army led by the rebellious commander.
President Vladimir Putin had vowed he would face harsh consequences. Mr Prigozhin said that while his men are just 120 miles from Moscow, he decided to turn them back to avoid “shedding Russian blood”. Join our WhatsApp Top Stories and Breaking News group by clicking this link He did not say whether the Kremlin has responded to his demand to oust Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu.
The announcement follows a statement from the office of Belarusian president Alexander Lukashenko saying that he had negotiated a deal with Mr Prigozhin after previously discussing the issue with Mr Putin.
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