Putin's Eye-opener Re Wagner PMC

M. K. Bhadrakumar’s site is required reading in the field of geopolitics. For example, today, in the second half of his latest lengthy article on the Prigozhin farce,

Prigozhin goes into exile but left behind a can of worms

MKB quotes a little noted Putin speech that provides key insight into the status of Wagner PMC and, not coincidentally, Prigozhin’s possible fate:

[Prigozhin] flew out of Russia Tuesday morning by his private jet and landed in Minsk at 11.30 am. 

Now comes a new twist to the tale. At 3.00 pm Moscow time on Tuesday, Putin gave yet another speech at a meeting in the Kremlin with military personnel apparently to express his “gratitude” to those who were on duty on the fateful days of the coup attempt. 

Putin assured the select audience that “everything will be done to support the families of our fallen comrades,” etc.  Then, Putin concluded his speech with an abrupt digression into one of Russia’s best kept public secrets — namely, that Wagner company is a progeny of the Russian state.

He said, “those who served and worked for this company, Wagner, were respected in Russia. At the same time, I would like to point out, and I want everyone to be aware of the fact that all of the funding the Wagner Group received came from the state. It got all its funding from us, from the Defence Ministry, from the state budget.

“Between May 2022 and May 2023 alone, the Wagner Group received 86,262 million rubles (approx. $1 billion) from the state to pay military salaries and bonuses… But while the state covered all of the Wagner Group’s funding needs, the company’s owner, Concord, received from the state, or should I say earned, 80 billion rubles ($940 million) through Voentorg as the army’s food and canteen provider. The state covered all its funding needs, while part of the group – I mean Concord – made 80 billion rubles, all at the same time. I do hope that no one stole anything in the process or, at least, did not steal a lot. It goes without saying that we will look into all of this.” 

This would be a nasty surprise to Prigozhin in Belarus — Russian authorities are probing him on charges of financial irregularities by his corporate business house! 

This will hit Prigozhin where it hurts, for his mother Violetta Prigozhina has been listed as the owner of Concord Catering. Possibly, the vast business empire that the oligarch built, thanks to state patronage — Concord Management and Consulting (construction and real estate development), LLC Megaline ( which hogged most capital construction contracts for the Russian military in 2016) and so on — can also come under scanner. 

This will not be the first time that the Kremlin punishes an errant oligarch who strayed into the shark-infested waters of Russian politics. Prigozhin would know that he will have some important choices to make in the coming months — and, possibly, even for the rest of his life.

Of course, Prigozhin’s future moves will be watched keenly not only in Moscow but the Western capitals as well who are far from convinced that the last word has been spoken on the dramatic events.    

Against this sordid backdrop, the big question is: Wasn’t Prigozhin’s coup attempt largely a crisis that was waiting to happen, which western/ Ukrainian  intelligence exploited? The heart of the matter is, scams follow Russian oligarchs like their shadows, and Prigozhin is no exception. The Russian authorities cannot wash their hands off this shameful reality.

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Uh oh!