Russian dictator Vladimir Putin met with Russia's top security officials on June 26 following an armed rebellion by the private military Wagner Group in Russia last weekend, according to the Kremlin.
Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, FSB security service head Alexander Bortnikov, and National Guard head Viktor Zolotov were reportedly present in the meeting, Dmitry Peskov, Putin's spokesman, told Russian state-controlled news outlet TASS.
Questions surrounding instability in Russia have followed the armed rebellion that took place between June 23-24, highlighting possible weaknesses in Putin's leadership and internal security.
Earlier in the day, Putin addressed Russians in his first televised address since the insurrection, denouncing the rebellion's organizers without naming Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigozhin, but called Wagner mercenaries "patriots," giving them the option to sign with the Defense Ministry or face deportation to Belarus.
Following negotiations with Belarusian dictator Aleksandr Lukashenko on June 24 that ended in Wagner's retreat from Russian cities, it was announced that Prigozhin would be sent to Belarus. Wagner camps are now being reportedly set up in the country.
Martin Fornusek
