Wagner’s boss Yevgeny Prigozhin has arrived in Belarus, the country’s authoritarian ruler Alexander Lukashenko said on Tuesday.
“Yes, indeed, he is in Belarus today,” Lukashenko She saidaccording to the Belarusian state news agency BELTA.
A private jet belonging to Prigozhin had reportedly landed at a military airstrip near Minsk on Tuesday morning.
Prigozhin has been exiled from Russia – under a three-way deal between the Kremlin, Wagner and Belarus – after leading a botched mutiny by his Wagner Group forces against President Vladimir Putin last weekend.
The rebel warlord reemerged on Monday afternoon, posting a defiant message on social media defending his troops’ rebellion against the Russian military leadership.
In his message, Prigozhin said that Minsk has offered its men to continue working from Belarus.
On Tuesday, Lukashenko said Belarus could benefit from the presence of Wagner troops on its territory.
“They will tell us about the weapons: which ones worked well, which ones didn’t. And tactics, weapons and how to attack, how to defend,” the Belarusian leader said, according to BELTA.
“This is invaluable. This is what we have to take from the Wagnerians,” she added.
