Belarus says Wagner rebellion in Russia a ‘gift’ to West

Russian servicemen sit atop of an armoured personnel carrier parked in a street in the city of Rostov-on-Don, early on June 24, 2023. President Vladimir Putin on June 24, 2023 said an armed mutiny by Wagner mercenaries was a “stab in the back” and that the group’s chief Yevgeny Prigozhin had betrayed Russia, as he vowed to punish the dissidents. Prigozhin said his fighters control key military sites in the southern city of Rostov-on-Don. (Photo by Vasily Deryugin / Kommersant Photo / AFP) / Russia OUT

MOSCOW, June 24, 2023 (AFP) – Russia’s close ally Belarus said Saturday that the armed insurrection underway by the Wagner mercenary group was a “gift” to Western countries, warning the uprising could spell “disaster”.

“Any provocation, any internal conflict in military or political circles, in the information field or in civil society is a gift to the collective West,” the Belarusian foreign ministry said, citing a statement by Minsk’s Security Council.

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