‘Putin will never forgive…’: Ex-CNN Moscow bureau chief warns Wagner army chief
2 min read 25 Jun 2023, 09:57 AM ISTRussian President Putin told Wagner Group's chief to go to Belarus after a deal to end an armed uprising, but former CNN Moscow bureau chief Jill Dougherty says he remains a 'traitor' and a threat.
PremiumRussian President Vladimir Putin has told Wagner Group's chief Yevgeny Prigozhin to go to Belarus after a deal to end an armed uprising, however, the head of the rebellion mercenary group still remains a ‘traitor’, said former CNN Moscow bureau chief Jill Dougherty in an interview to the US-based news channel on Saturday.
Calling the ongoing situation a ‘real dilemma’, she also said that Putin doesn't forgive traitors and Prigozhin is a threat, according to a report published by CNN.
"I think Putin will never ever forgive that. I think it is a real dilemma because as long as Prigozhin is acting the way he does and has some type of support, he is a threat. Regardless of where he is," Dougherty said as quoted by the news organization.
The former CNN Moscow bureau chief said that the turmoil created on the streets of Russia makes Putin looks ‘really weak’, not a ‘strongman leader’ as he always positions himself to be.
“Putin himself looks really weak. If I were Putin, I would be worried about those people on the streets of Rostov cheering the Wagner people as they leave," she told CNN.
Dougherty further asked why average Russians are cheering people trying to carry out a coup, while also saying that means they maybe support them or might be like them. "Whatever it is, it is really bad news for Putin."
The head of the Wagner mercenary group vowed Saturday to "go to the end" to topple the Russian military leadership in the country.
However, he took a U-turn and returned to their field camps from the southern Russian city of Rostov-on-Don under a deal brokered by Belarus which ensured Russia dropped charges against Wagner's chief, Prigozhin, for armed mutiny.
Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko has offered to mediate with Russian President Vladimir Putin's agreement. The criminal case that had begun against Prigozhin for armed mutiny would be dropped and the Wagner fighters who had taken part in his "march for justice" would not face any action, in recognition of their previous service to Russia, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov informed on Saturday.
He also said that the criminal case will be dropped against Prigozhin for armed mutiny because the Russian president knew him personally for more than 20 years.
Hence, Prigozhin announced that while his men were just 200 kilometers (120 miles) from Moscow, he had decided to retreat to avoid “shedding Russian blood." His troops were ordered back to their field camps in Ukraine, where they have been fighting alongside Russian regular soldiers.
