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Russia’s Putin snubs Prigozhin, Biden jokes about poison

Russia’s Putin snubs Prigozhin, Biden jokes about poison

RUSSIAN President Vladimir Putin offered Wagner mercenaries the opportunity to keep fighting at a meeting just days after their failed mutiny but suggested Yevgeny Prigozhin be moved aside in favour of a different commander, the Kommersant newspaper said. Putin initially said he would crush the June 23-24 mutiny, comparing it to the wartime turmoil that ushered in the revolutions of 1917, but hours later a deal was clinched to allow Prigozhin and some of his fighters to go to Belarus. Mystery surrounds the fate of that deal as well as the future of Wagner, one of the world's most battle-hardened mercenary…
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NATO flexes muscle to protect Vilnius summit near Russia, Belarus

NATO flexes muscle to protect Vilnius summit near Russia, Belarus

NATO has turned Vilnius into a fortress defended by advanced weaponry to protect U.S. President Joe Biden and other alliance leaders meeting next week only 32 km (20 miles) from Lithuania's razor-wire topped border fence with Russian ally Belarus. Sixteen NATO allies have sent a total of about 1,000 troops to safeguard the July 11-12 summit, which will take place only 151 km (94 miles) from Russia itself. Many are also providing advanced air defence systems which the Baltic states lack. "It would be more than irresponsible to have our sky unprotected as Biden and leaders of 40 countries are…
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Mercenary chief Prigozhin back in Russia, Belarus’s Lukashenko says

Mercenary chief Prigozhin back in Russia, Belarus’s Lukashenko says

BELARUSIAN President Alexander Lukashenko said that the mutinous chief of Russia's Wagner group was still in Russia with thousands of fighters, but dismissed speculation that President Vladimir Putin would have Yevgeny Prigozhin killed. Lukashenko helped broker a deal to end last month's mutiny, the gravest challenge to Putin in his 23 years in power, under which Prigozhin was supposed to stand down his mercenaries and move to Belarus in exchange for Putin dropping charges. But in comments that raised questions about the deal, Lukashenko said Prigozhin and his fighters were still in Russia, and that it was possible they would…
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What does the Wagner Group do? Operations in Africa and the rest of the world explained

What does the Wagner Group do? Operations in Africa and the rest of the world explained

THE abortive mutiny by Russia's Wagner group last week calls into question the fate of the group's wide network of military and commercial operations across Europe, the Middle East and Africa. This factbox shows what Wagner is doing and where. UKRAINE Wagner deployed in Ukraine soon after the invasion began early last year and by the summer it was enlisting thousands of prisoners to fight for it on the front lines. By December, as it took a central role in the battle for Bakhmut, U.S. intelligence estimated it had 40,000 prisoner recruits fighting in Ukraine, though Wagner itself has not commented on…
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Mercenary chief Prigozhin starts exile in Belarus, Putin praises Russian troops

Mercenary chief Prigozhin starts exile in Belarus, Putin praises Russian troops

RUSSIAN mercenary leader Yevgeny Prigozhin arrived in Belarus under a deal that ended a brief mutiny by his fighters, as President Vladimir Putin praised his armed forces for averting a civil war. A plane linked to Prigozhin and believed to be carrying him into exile was shown on a flight tracking service taking off from the southern Russian city of Rostov early on Tuesday and landing in Belarus. "I see Prigozhin is already flying in on this plane," state news agency BELTA quoted Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko as saying. "Yes, indeed, he is in Belarus today." In Moscow, Putin sought to reassert…
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Putin says Russia positions nuclear bombs in Belarus as warning to West

Putin says Russia positions nuclear bombs in Belarus as warning to West

PRESIDENT Vladimir Putin said that his deployment of tactical nuclear weapons to Belarus, something he confirmed for the first time had already happened, was a reminder to the West that it could not inflict a strategic defeat on Russia. Speaking at Russia's flagship economic forum in St Petersburg, Putin said Russian tactical nuclear warheads had already been delivered to close ally Belarus, but stressed he saw no need for Russia to resort to nuclear weapons for now. "As you know we were negotiating with our ally, (Belarusian President (Alexander) Lukashenko, that we would move a part of these tactical nuclear…
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EXCLUSIVE: Belarusian sprinter decided to defect on way to airport over safety fears

EXCLUSIVE: Belarusian sprinter decided to defect on way to airport over safety fears

GABRIELLE TETRAULT-FARBER OLYMPIC sprinter Krystsina Tsimanouskaya decided to defect as she was being driven to a Tokyo airport because her grandmother told her that it was not safe to return home to Belarus. In an exclusive interview with Reuters in Warsaw on Thursday, she said her family feared she would be sent to a psychiatric ward if she went back to Belarus, and that her grandmother had called her to tell her not to return. "I have always been far from politics, I didn't sign any letters or go to any protests, I didn't say anything against the Belarusian government,"…
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Olympics-Biles retakes spotlight as world records fall, IOC probes Belarus

Olympics-Biles retakes spotlight as world records fall, IOC probes Belarus

STEVE KEATING and MITCH PHILLIPS SIMONE Biles retook the gymnastics stage on Tuesday after a week's absence, electrifying the Tokyo Olympics on a day that saw world records smashed and organisers probe Belarus's treatment of an athlete now in diplomatic protection. The return of the American, considered by many the greatest gymnast ever, ensured a blockbuster finale for the sport at the Ariake Gymnastics Centre as Biles scored 14.000 on the balance beam to take the bronze. She had abruptly dropped out of the team event earlier in the Games citing mental health issues and increasing the global spotlight on…
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Belarus opposition leader hails world support after journalist arrest

Belarus opposition leader hails world support after journalist arrest

ANDRIUS SYTAS BELARUS  opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya on Saturday hailed support from around the world after Minsk scrambled a warplane to intercept a flight and arrested a dissident journalist on board. Belarus has been subject to EU and U.S. sanctions since President Alexander Lukashenko cracked down on pro-democracy protests after a disputed election last year. But his decision to intercept an international airliner in Belarusian airspace and arrest the 26-year-old has brought threats of more serious action. Most European countries told their aircraft to avoid Belarus airspace and banned Belarus carriers from their skies. "I am very touched by the…
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World must prevent repeat of Belarus incident, airlines chief says

World must prevent repeat of Belarus incident, airlines chief says

THE head of a group representing most global airlines welcomed an international investigation into the forced landing of a Ryanair jetliner in Belarus and said the world must ensure such incidents never happen again. "That sort of behaviour is completely unacceptable and must be strongly condemned. We must have measures to ensure that can't happen again," Willie Walsh, director-general of the International Air Transport Association, told Reuters. The United Nations' International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) agreed on Thursday to investigate the forced grounding. Belarus has said it was responding to a bomb threat. Walsh said evidence suggested the threat had…
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