Putin Speaks Out After Wagner Revolt Transcript

Russian President Vladimir Putin is speaking. Let’s listen in.

[inaudible 00:00:03] and attempts to start mutiny are going to have no results. There have been consolidation of the society. The strong position and support was taken by religious confessions, political parties, in fact, the whole Russian society. Everyone was united by the main thing: responsibility for the fate of our motherland. From the very beginning, all the necessary actions on neutralization of the threat have been taken. The armed mutiny would have been destroyed in any case. The organizers, despite their loss of mind, should have realized this. Despite the unprecedented pressure from outside, when our comrades are dying in the front, the organizers of the mutiny, by betraying their country, were pushing…

… the enemies of Russia and the Neo-Nazis and different types of treacherers, these soldiers of Russia with the military service personnel, so that in the final analysis, Russia would lose. And our society has broken up because of this. They’ve lost their arms for their failures on the front for their counter-crimes. But we have to count on the fact that all our military service personnel, workers, service personnel, all those security forces, have shown their loyalty, their faith, their courage for the heroes, for the pilots of this tragedy.

(02:41)
In addition, we know that the overwhelming majority of the fighters are patriots of Russia with their people for the state. They’ve proven their courage, freeing Donbas, and trying to use against their brothers, fought together for the country. Therefore, from the very beginning, we’ve undertaken steps to avoid a big bloodshed, including giving the possibility to think for those to understand that their actions have decisively been rejected by society. The destructive consequences for Russia, for the state of such adventurism which tragedies could lead to. I thank great thanks to those soldiers who’ve taken the only right decision: to stop the flowing of the bloodshed.

(03:54)
Today, you have the possibility to have a contract with the Ministry of Defense and all others, to come back to those who are their nearest and dearest. In this address will be used… I repeat the choice for each of you. I’m convinced it will be a choice of the military in Russia, who’ve recognized their mistakes. I’m grateful to the President of Belarus, Aleksandr Lukashenko, for his efforts and his contribution for this peaceful resolution, but I repeat that this patriotism of the Russian society made a decisive step and made it possible for us to gather to overcome the most difficult situation. Thank you. I thank you.

We have been listening to Russian President Vladimir Putin talk about what we saw unfold this week, and Yevgeny Prigozhin, the head of the Wagner Mercenary Group, apparently attempting a coup headed toward Moscow, now denying it, saying that this was not a coup, but rather a protest. Vladimir Putin responding saying that this was a mutiny: saying that these soldiers betrayed Russia, describing them as neo-Nazis, traitors of the Homeland, who tried to break up our society. He says that the Kremlin has taken steps to try to avoid bloodshed. Yet he offered these Wagner troops an opportunity to come back and sign contracts with the Ministry of Defense. Quite a statement from Putin.

He in effect [inaudible 00:05:42] them, right? That’s how Prigozhin perceived these offers to sign regular contracts with the Russian regular army, was that they would be taken away as a power center for him. And listen, having reported over these last few days on first the rebellion and now this peace deal, as it were, this is a Russian president who is not making nice with Prigozhin. I mean, he’s accusing him of betraying his country.

No, but he’s also trying to make him out to be this leader who had no followers, which is interesting, because we’ve seen the pictures and there were people who were supporting Prigozhin. Ultimately, did he have enough support? Maybe not. That may be why he blinked. But you also saw Vladimir Putin blinking as well, and that is certainly to be clear.

(06:24)
I want to get now to CNN’s Matthew Chance, who is in Moscow. Matthew, what is your takeaway from this?

Well, actually, we’re a little nonplussed by it here, because we thought the statements were going to be a lot more dramatic. The Kremlin was really speaking it up beforehand, saying that this statement would determine the fate of the Russian state of Russia, and it doesn’t seem to have done that. It just seems to have reiterated a lot of the stuff I think we’ve already been talking about quite a lot since this armed rebellion was put down.

(07:05)
I think what’s most interesting for me, sitting here in Moscow watching this, is that it’s been so long since we’ve seen Vladimir Putin in public. He hasn’t come out and actually said anything since this rebellion was, well, put down or whether it was negotiated away or whatever happened. And so finally, we’ve seen the Russian President stand up in front of the nation, condemn this armed uprising, reiterate the deal that had been offered to the Wagner fighters who didn’t take part, which is that they’ll be offered contracts, or are being offered contracts, with the Russian military, and also condemn the loss of life that did occur. And of course, we’ve not spoken enough, I don’t think, about the fact that several Russian aircraft were shot out of the sky by Wagner forces, with a number of pilots being killed. And Vladimir Putin referred to that loss of life, and of course, condemned it.