Wagner to participate in the training of Belarusian armed forces
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The Belarusian Defense Ministry says the PMC will be involved in the training and mutual exchange of experience with the army.
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Wagner PMC forces in Rostov-on-Don after the armed mutiny on June 24, 2023 (AFP)
Wagner PMC will take part in the training of the Belarusian armed forces, the Defense Ministry of Belarus announced on Tuesday.
"After the arrival of representatives of PMC Wagner and their dispersal at the training grounds for training and mutual exchange of experience, special attention is planned to be paid to the methods and methods of conducting combat operations by the armed forces of Belarus," the ministry said in a statement.
On June 24, PMC Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin announced on his Telegram channel storming the Rostov-on-Don region and taking over the military headquarters in response to what he claims was a Russian attack on his troops earlier under the orders of the Defense Ministry, while the Ministry rejected his accusations.
Read more: Latest update: Wagner advances to Moscow
Russian President Vladimir Putin vowed in a speech following the armed mutiny that those responsible "will suffer inevitable punishment" and described Prigozhin's action as "treason" that was driven by "personal interests and excessive ambition."
"As President of Russia and Commander-in-Chief, as a citizen of Russia, I will do everything to defend the country, to protect the constitutional order, the lives, security, and freedom of citizens," he said then.
After talks with Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, who was acting at the behest of Putin, Prigozhin decided to put an end to the attempted armed mutiny.
Kremlin Spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed to Lukashenko's offer since he had known Prigozhin personally for around 20 years and that Putin's word can be considered a guarantee for allowing Prigozhin to depart to Belarus.
Wagner's chief then was transported to Belarus along with some of his forces that agreed to remain under his command, while others either ended their service and retired or signed contracts with Russia's Defense Ministry.
Later, Russian armed forces announced that they had taken over the PMC's military hardware.
After Prigozhin's arrival to Belarus, Lukashenko asked that the Wagner leader transfer his on-field combat experience to the country's armed forces.
However, the events that the West placed bets on to lead Russia into an internal crisis took a turn earlier this week.
Kremlin Spokesperson Dmitry Peskov confirmed on Monday that Putin held a meeting in Moscow with the commanders of Wagner to discuss the June 24 military revolt attempt.
Read more: Too early to say Wagner mutiny weakened Putin: Milley
"The only thing we can say is that the president gave an assessment of the company's actions at the front line during the special military operation, and also gave his assessment of the events of June 24," Peskov said, noting that the meeting included 35 top defense officials and lasted for 3 hours.
Peskov added that "Putin listened to the explanations of the commanders and offered them further employment options," highlighting that Wagner's commanders told the Russian President that they are his staunch supporters and are ready to continue fighting for Russia.
