Commenting on the death of Yevgeny Prigozhin, head of the ‘Wagner’ mercenary battalion, who died in an air crash, Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko said that he had warned Prigozhin on several occasions to be careful as there were death threats.
Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko is a close friend of Prigozhin and Russian President Vladimir Putin. Last June, Prigozhin and his ‘Wagner’ mercenary battalion posed a challenge to the Russian military and Russian President Putin. It was with them preparing for a military mutiny. At that time, Putin called Prigozhin a traitor. The military mutiny, which was limited to a few hours, ended when President Lukashenko intervened and brought Prigozhin and ‘Wagner’ members to Belarus.
Prigozhin was also one of Putin’s closest associates in the past. After going to Belarus, Prigozhin arranged to meet Putin again and discuss and come back to Russia. Even then, President Lukashenko said that he asked Prigozhin not to go to Russia. ‘If you go to Russia, you will die. And I told him that Putin is not a forgiving person. Then he answered me by saying “If I’m going to die, I may die and I am not afraid,'” Lukashenko explained in the media.
Prigozhin died when the private jet he was travelling in crashed. (Reuters)
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