United States (US) intelligence officials learned that Yevgeniy Prigozhin, chief of the mercenary Wager Group, was planning an armed uprising against Vladimir Putin as early as mid-June.
US and Western officials observed enough signals that Prigozhin was preparing a move against the Russian government, such as his amassing weapons and ammunition. However, the exact timing remained unclear until shortly before his march on Moscow on Friday.
Prigozhin was prompted by the Russian Defense Ministry’s order that every volunteer detachment – including the Wagner Group – must sign contracts with the government on June 10, officials believe, signifying a government takeover of Prigozhin’s mercenaries – an action that was considered “out of the question” to Wagner’s chief.
US intelligence agencies also believe Putin was aware that Prigozhin was conspiring against him before the march began but have been left confused by Putin’s lack of action against the uprising, as well as his willingness to broker a deal with the Wagner chief through Aleksandr Lukashenko, the President of Belarus.
Several US officials said, “they fully expected that Mr. Putin would eventually say the uprising was the result of a foreign plot.”
https://thenationalpulse.com/2023/06/25/u-s-knew-of-impending-wagner-rebellion-weeks-ago/
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