Kremlin says Putin met Prigozhin after mutiny

Russian President Vladimir Putin met Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin and other members of his mercenary group days after the latter's short-lived mutiny on June 24, the Kremlin announced on Monday.

"The president gave his assessment of the events of June 24," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, referring to the mutiny, led by Prigozhin.

He added that Putin also heard the "accounts given by [Wagner] commanders" and "offered them alternative options for employment," including in combat roles.

The meeting took place on June 29 and lasted for over three hours, Peskov said.

Who else was there when Putin met Prigozhin?

Peskov said Putin had invited 35 people to the meeting. They included Prigozhin and Wagner unit commanders. 

French newspaper Liberation, the first to report on the meeting, said that the head of the National Guard, Victor Zolotov and SVR Foreign Intelligence boss Sergei Naryshkin also attended the meeting.

"The commanders outlined their version of what happened," Peskov said. "They emphasized that they are staunch supporters and soldiers of the head of state and the supreme commander-in-chief. They also said that they are ready to continue fighting for the Motherland."

Prigozhin, Wagner and the mutiny

The mutiny was widely regarded as the most serious challenge to Putin's rule since he came to power over two decades ago. It ended with a deal brokered by Belarus leader Alexander Lukashenko, as per which Prigohzin was meant to leave for the neighboring country.

Last week,Lukashenko said that Prigozhin was back in Russia and his Wagner fighters had yet to take up an offer to relocate to Belarus.

rmt/jcg (AFP, Reuters)