Medvedev: World on brink of catastrophe if Wagner acquires Russia's nukes

By REUTERS

JUNE 24, 2023 18:35

Updated: JUNE 24, 2023 19:51

Deputy Chairman of Russia's Security Council Dmitry Medvedev gives an interview at the Gorki state residence outside Moscow, Russia, January 25, 2022. (photo credit: SPUTNIK/YULIA ZYRYANOVA/POOL VIA REUTERS) — Deputy Chairman of Russia's Security Council Dmitry Medvedev gives an interview at the Gorki state residence outside Moscow, Russia, January 25, 2022.

(photo credit: SPUTNIK/YULIA ZYRYANOVA/POOL VIA REUTERS)

Medvedev, deputy chairman of Russia's Security Council, said the whole world would be on the brink of catastrophe if Russian nuclear weapons fell into the hands of "bandits".

Former president Dmitry Medvedev said on Saturday that Russia would not allow a mutiny led by mercenary boss Yevgeny Prigozhin to turn into a coup or a global crisis, state news agency TASS reported on Saturday.

Answering questions from journalists, Medvedev, deputy chairman of Russia's Security Council, said the whole world would be on the brink of catastrophe if Russian nuclear weapons fell into the hands of "bandits".

The "bandits" attempting the coup

Prigozhin, a former convict and long-time ally of Putin, leads Wagner, a private army that includes thousands of former prisoners recruited from Russian jails.

His men took on the fiercest fighting of the 16-month Ukraine war, including the protracted battle for the eastern city of Bakhmut.

A supporter of Wagner private mercenary group holds flags near the headquarters of the Southern Military District controlled by Wagner fighters in the city of Rostov-on-Don, Russia, June 24, 2023. (credit: STRINGER/ REUTERS)

He railed for months against the regular army's top brass, accusing generals of incompetence and of withholding ammunition from his fighters. This month, he defied orders to sign a contract placing his troops under Defense Ministry command.

He launched the apparent mutiny on Friday after alleging that the military had killed many of his fighters in an air strike. The Defense Ministry denied it.