'Deeply Mistaken': Wagner Chief Reacts To Putin's 'Traitors' Remark, Rules Out Surrender

The Wagner mercenary group captured the first city in Russia, Rostov-on-Don, in the country’s first armed insurrection since the Chechen wars on Saturday.

A member of Wagner group stands guard in a street after Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin's statement in Rostov-on-Don, Russia.

New Delhi: Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin lashed out at Russian President Vladimir Putin and said the latter was “deeply mistaken” to call him and his forces traitors, and ruled out any possibility of surrender. Prigozhin termed himself and the Wagner forces as “true patriots”, in the first statement since Putin’s televised address calling the Wagner mutiny “treason”.

"The president makes a deep mistake when he talks about treason. We are patriots of our motherland, we fought and are fighting for it," Prigozhin said in an audio message. "We don't want the country to continue to live in corruption and deceit," as reported by news agency Reuters.

His statement comes in the wake of Putin’s televised address where he said, “Excessive ambitions and vested interests have led to treason. It is a blow to Russia, to our people. And our actions to defend the Fatherland against such a threat will be harsh. All those who deliberately stepped on the path of betrayal, who prepared an armed insurrection, who took the path of blackmail and terrorist methods, will suffer inevitable punishment, will answer both to the law and to our people.”

READ | Mercenary Group Captures First City In Russia After Threatening To Topple Moscow's Military Leadership

Meanwhile, the Wagner mercenary group captured the first city in Russia, Rostov-on-Don, in the country’s first armed insurrection since the Chechen wars on Saturday, Reuters reported. Amid the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict, Prigozhin vowed to overthrow Moscow's military leadership, as the Wagner militia were in control of the streets of Rostov-on-Don, a city close to the Ukraine border. 

“We are inside the (army) headquarters, it is 7:30 am (0430 GMT),” Prigozhin had said in a video on Telegram earlier. “Military sites in Rostov, including an aerodrome, are under control,” he said, adding that he and his 25,000 fighters were “ready to die”.