Sergei Surovikin, a high-ranking Russian general, was aware of Yevgeny Prigozhin’s plans for rebellion against Moscowaccording to anonymous US intelligence sources cited by The New York Times. Information that has raised doubts about What support did the leader of the Wagner Group mercenaries have? within the upper echelons of the Russian army.
The officials say they are trying to find out if General Surovikinthe top military officer in charge of the war in Ukraine until last January, helped plan the Prigozhin rebellion last weekend, considered the biggest internal threat to Putin in his 23 years in power. General Surovikin is known for his brutality and his role in the conflicts in Chechnya and Syria.
If General Surovikin was involved in this weekend’s mutiny, it would be the latest sign of the infighting that has characterized Russia’s military leadership since the start of the war in Ukraine, in February 2022, and could point to a broader fracture between Prigozhin’s supporters and Putin’s.
Putin’s two main military advisers are Sergei Shoigu, Defense Minister, and General Valery Gerasimov, Chief of the General Staff. Shoigu and Prigozhin They have been fighting since the beginning of the invasion. The Wagner leader had demanded Shoigu’s removal for his management of the war. The latest clash was allegedly over Prigozhin’s accusations of shelling one of his camps, sparking the insurrection on Friday.
Surokovikin and Prigozhin worked together during the Russian military intervention in Syria. Former officials are considering the possibility that General Surovikin did not want to overthrow Putin, but to the Minister of Defense and the Chief of the General Staff with whom they have also clashed over the tactics used in Ukraine.
Putin must now decide, according to the American newspaper, whether you think that General Surovikin helped Prigozhin and how you should respond. This Tuesday, the Kremlin announced that it was closing the criminal case with the leader and Wagner’s mercenaries. Senior US officials suggest that an alliance between General Surovikin and Prigozhin could explain why the head of the mercenaries is still alivedespite seizing a major Russian military center and ordering an armed march on Moscow.
