Press review on Prigozhin: “Message to other potential putschists”

Russian mercenary leader Yevgeny Prigozhin is believed to have been killed in a plane crash in Russia two months after his mysterious mutiny. An official confirmation is still pending. The aviation authority Rosawiazija announced, however, that his name was on the passenger list. According to preliminary information, all ten people on board died, the Russian civil defense said.

“Prigozhin died as a result of the actions of traitors to Russia,” said a post on Telegram’s Gray Zone channel, which Prigozhin used. “But even in Hell he will be the best!”

This is how international newspapers comment on the Prigozhin case.

Prigozhin plane crashed: “Hardly anyone will want to believe in a tragic coincidence”

“The Telegraph”, London: “Reports about the shooting down of a plane that allegedly had the Wagner leader Yevgeny Prigozhin on board are another extraordinary twist in recent Russian history. They also testify to the total dysfunction of the state after Putin’s disastrous invasion of Ukraine. In In what other European country, outside the Kremlin’s sphere of influence, do the most important political or military leaders live in fear of such events? But in Russia, the extraordinary has almost become the norm. (…)

In any case, this crash will not be the end of internal Russian military conflicts. There remain a large number of trained and active Wagner fighters, battle-hardened from battles in Ukraine or looting in Africa, and highly dissatisfied with the leadership of their country. Indeed, some young Russians found Prigozhin’s message persuasive, believing that Putin started a war that was not properly fought. This will become an even greater problem the longer this “military special operation” drags on.”

“Wall Street Journal”, New York: “This is no coincidence, comrade, as the Soviets used to say. (…) If Prigozhin’s death was an assassination, it was intended as a message to other potential putschists. (…) Prigozhin’s death revealed the brutal policies now dominating Russia Too many in the West, including the US left and right, believe that exposure or appeasement can persuade Putin to desist from his ambitions to restore a Greater Russian empire driving ideology and ruthlessness. He’ll kill anyone who gets in his way at home, and he’ll do the same abroad — in Ukraine, in Poland, or anywhere else he thinks he can get away with it.”

“Neue Zürcher Zeitung”, Zurich: “Hardly anyone would want to believe in a tragic coincidence. Exactly two months ago, on the evening of June 23, the bald-headed 62-year-old threw down the gauntlet to Putin in an unprecedented manner and ‘March for Justice’ announced to Rostov-on-Don and further to Moscow. (…) That Prigozhin den ‘treason’ would survive in the longer term, but was unlikely since those days. Only the type of “sudden death” has been eagerly speculated in recent weeks. (…)

The supposed exile in Belarus after the failed uprising seemed implausible from the start. The return to Africa, which Prigozhin attempted to demonstrate in a video that was circulated on Monday, was just a swan song. It has already been said that the military company Redut, which is attached to the Ministry of Defence, is poaching Wagner members and taking over operations in Africa. Dmitri Utkin, combat name, should also accompany Prigozhin ‘wagner’, died in the crash. The Wagner chapter seems to be over, at least on a practical level.”

“de Volkskrant”, Amsterdam: “It is still unclear whether Prigozhin was really the victim of an attack. What is certain, however, is that the head of the Wagner mercenary group has many enemies. Not only in the Ukraine, also in the Russian leadership. (…) If Prigozhin actually died , then this is good news for Ukraine, but also for the Russian army leadership, who had to watch with gnashing teeth as the controversial head of the Wagner troop was cheered by Russian military bloggers.

Now it is expected that (Defense Minister) Sergei Shoigu and (Chief of the General Staff) Valery Gerasimov will use this opportunity to purge the armed forces of Prigozhin supporters. It is striking that the head of the Russian Aerospace Forces, General Sergey Surovikin, with whom the Wagner chief was closely associated, was fired on Tuesday.”

“Rzeczpospolita”, Warsaw: “Regardless of whether Prigozhin is alive or dead, whether he was only on the passenger list but did not board, or whether he was on the plane – one thing is certain: he was on Putin’s list. Two months ago, after a bizarre mutiny of the Wagner fighters, Putin spoke to confused and frightened Russians about a betrayal that would be punished. You will hardly find a Russian who does not now believe that the punishment has been carried out. Not only in Russia are there any illusions that the Kremlin does not hesitate to eliminate opponents or disloyal partisans.

But would the Wagner chief’s death, if confirmed, have any impact on the actions we associate with Prigozhin? The Great War in the East, Russian actions in Africa or provocations on the Belarusian borders? That’s doubtful. There are no irreplaceable people, even among bandits. Russia will not give up anything that Prigozhin and his mercenaries helped with. Worse still, the liquidation of the Wagner boss would be a signal to the Russians that the Kremlin can’t just be helped from time to time. You always have to do it.”

“Gazeta Wyborcza”, Warsaw: “The death of this man, especially if the nation recognizes him as fictitious, is of great use in today’s situation. It will only increase the confusion in Russia. After what happened with ‘Putin’s cook’ done, everyone else will feel threatened too. Prigozhin-related media announce that the Wagner group is now ‘will activate a special mechanism prepared in case of his death’. They do not explain what this should consist of. However, it is unlikely that the Wagner militants, who are spread across Russia, Belarus and Africa, will spontaneously protest the assassination of their boss.

Yet they remain a dangerous force. Discharged from the front, cured of wounds, discharged from service at the end of their contract, they can be found all over Russia. They have guns and are great at using them. If, as the Kremlin fears, another rebellion erupts, they could become a powerful force. And one ‘false Prigozhin’ or ‘false Wagner’ Putting them at the top, operating from the depths of the internet, would easily be possible in such a situation.”