1 RUSSIA
Prigozhin ‘met Putin five days after Wagner mutiny’
The Kremlin said the Wagner group head, Yevgeny Prigozhin, met Vladimir Putin on 29 June, five days after his mercenary fighters marched towards Moscow in an aborted rebellion. The Russian president’s spokesperson, Dmitry Peskov, told reporters that Putin invited 35 senior Wagner commanders including Prigozhin to the Kremlin.
The statements reveal Prigozhin has travelled to Russia at least once since the deal brokered by the Belarusian president, Alexander Lukashenko, under which the warlord abandoned his military march on Moscow in exchange for safe passage to exile in Belarus. According to Peskov, Prigozhin assured Putin during the meeting that his Wagner troops were loyal to the country and the president.
Peskov did not comment on Prigozhin’s whereabouts, which remained unclear. Last week, Lukashenko said Prigozhin was in St Petersburg.
Prigozhin’s meeting suggests he still enjoys some leverage in Russia and is likely seen as a valuable asset, despite having brought the country to the brink of civil war last month.
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2 FRANCE
Brutal arrest at march adds to tensions in capital
A brutal arrest during a peaceful march against police violence again put French law and order under the spotlight, as the government, fearing further unrest, banned fireworks outside authorised displays during this weekend’s Bastille Day holiday.
Amid continuing tensions after rioting sparked by last month’s fatal shooting of a teenager, police faced
