Putin’s speech to the nation in the midst of the PMC Wagner coup attempt: key points

Evgeny Prigozhin is the subject of an ongoing criminal investigation for urging an armed uprising.

In the midst of a coup attempt by the private military firm Wagner, Russian President Vladimir Putin addressed the nation. He referred to the mutineers’ behavior as “backstabbing” and urged cooperation.

Evgeny Prigozhin, the leader of PMC Wagner, said late on Friday that the Russian military had attacked the base of his organization; the Defense Ministry has categorically refuted this.

In response, Russian authorities have opened a criminal case against Prigozhin for mounting an armed uprising.

The value of oneness

According to President Putin, “Russia today is waging a grueling fight for its future,” contending with “neo-Nazis and their masters.” He continued by emphasizing that “essentially the entire might of the West’s military, economic, and information machine” is being directed against the nation.

In his speech, Putin stated that “this battle, when the fate of our people is being decided,” demands for national unification and cohesion. The president declared that all internal disputes and squabbles have to be put on hold for the time being because “our external enemies can and will use them to undermine us internally.”

The president of state of Russia stressed that any activities dividing Russians amount to “backstabbing of our country and our people.”

sour historical teachings

Putin recalled that a comparable situation occurred in 1917, when Russia was still engaged in World War I. He described how the “collapse of the state” and the “tragedy of the Civil War” were caused by “intrigues, bickering, and politicking behind the army’s and the people’s back.”

The president said that “Russians were killing Russians, brothers were killing brothers, while various political adventurists and foreign powers were profiting from it.”

Putin promised to stop it from happening and to safeguard Russia and its citizens, “including from internal mutiny.”

the type of threat

In his speech, Putin made it quite obvious that the PMC coup attempt was a “betrayal.” According to him, certain people’s “enormous ambitions and personal interests” are to blame for this “betrayal of their country and its people.” Without specifically mentioning Prigozhin, he continued by saying that those responsible had abandoned both the united military effort in Ukraine and the remembrance of the deceased soldiers.

According to Putin, if the coup was successful, it would end in “anarchy and fratricide,” which would ultimately lead to Russia’s “defeat” and “capitulation.”

The president referred to “any internal mutiny” as a threat to the survival of the Russian state and people. The president promised to use “tough measures” against the mutineers since they had “willingly entered the path of betrayal” and were preparing a “armed insurrection.”

The president told the populace that those accountable will be brought before the Russian people.

actions taken

According to Putin, the military forces and other authorities have received the required directives. He continued by saying that various areas, including Moscow and the Moscow Region, have implemented a unique anti-terrorist security routine.

The functioning of the local civil and military agencies is “effectively blocked,” according to the Russian president, who conceded that the situation in Rostov-on-Don, in southern Russia, remains “difficult.” The state will, though, take “decisive actions to stabilize” the situation in the city.

President Putin concluded his speech by pledging to use whatever means at his disposal to protect the “country, [and] defend the constitutional order, life, security, and liberty of citizens.”