Niger Coup Resists External Pressure To Reverse Course
Goodwill towards France is dwindling precipitously in the post-coup Niger. French flags were burned at the French embassy, while locals shouted anti-French slogans.
Goodwill towards France is dwindling precipitously in the post-coup Niger. French flags were burned at the French embassy, while locals shouted anti-French slogans.
For the first time since Yevgeny Prigozhin’s failed march on Moscow, the Wagner boss reappeared. In a new video, the 62-year-old told the mercenary forces they would no longer fight in Ukraine but would “help train the Belarusian army,” which he was certain they could turn into “the second best army in the world,” after, naturally, Wagner itself.
Important defence agreements were reached at the Vilnius summit, accompanied by a unanimous joint statement of support for Ukraine.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Prigozhin, along with a few dozen Wagner commanders, met with Russian President Vladimir Putin, just five days after the aborted mutiny, where they discussed, among other things, their version of what took place on June 24th.
The rebellious mercenary chief lost six news sites and a $1 billion worth of catering business over the weekend. But even without Wagner, “there is no threat of decreased combat potential” on the front, Moscow claims.
Illegal migrants are getting bolder and more aggressive at the border, but Polish authorities also brace for possible destabilization attempts coming from the 8,000 Wagner fighters relocated in the neighboring Belarus.
“We keep a very wary eye on everything that occurs in Belarus with Prigozhin there and an unknown number of very trained and skilled fighters who presumably will be joining him,” Latvian Prime Minister Arturs Krišjānis Kariņš said.
Poland promises to veto the migrant relocations, Hungary questions Brussels’s extra-budgetary requests, and others keep worrying about the possibility of a resurgent Wagner coming out of Belarus. All in one day.
The Russian president accused those who participated in the mutiny of betraying the nation and doing the bidding of Moscow’s foes
Observers trying to make sense of the ordeal don’t know if the mutiny was a product of an emotional outburst or internal power struggle; a well-planned attempt to overthrow Putin; or an elaborate ploy for Russia to gain leverage over Kyiv.
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