Is Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin’s death an act of revenge by Vladimir Putin?
FirstpostWagner Group chief Yevgeny Prigozhin is reportedly dead after a plane carrying him crashed north of Moscow on Wednesday. That’s the question many are asking after Russia confirmed that Wagner mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin died when a private jet crashed north of the Russian capital, Moscow. The crash comes just two months after Prigozhin had launched a short-lived rebellion – seen as the biggest challenge to Russian president Vladimir Putin’s authority since he came to power. In fact, Central Intelligence Agency director William Burns had even commented then, “Putin is the ultimate apostle of payback.” And he even added, “If I were Prigozhin I wouldn’t fire my food taster.” Following the plane crash, US president Joe Biden also said that he was unsurprised by the untimely demise of Prigozhin, pointing the finger at Putin. “You want your own guys to know that you’re brutal and ruthless and anyone who betrays Putin is going to pay the ultimate price,” he said, adding, “Putin is cauterising his wounds.” A former British intelligence official, Christopher Steele, went one step ahead and told Sky News that there had been information circulating that a contract had been put out on Prigozhin in Russia by senior members of the business community.