Illuminati-R-Us

Well that looks like a short-lived story

https://i.stuff.co.nz/world/europe/3009 ... h-kills-10

(Note to self; try and avoid hopping on a plane with a guy like him)

If revenge is a dish best served cold, this wasn't the best way to serve it.

Luna-26?

I wondered what would happen to Wagner after this. The top guys may have been dealt with, but there are a lot of fighters left out there - and not all of them in Russia in Putin's immediate reach. Would they agree to "come back, all is forgiven" - when they now have absolute proof that it's not? More likely those in Belarus would find ways of slipping to other parts of the world and get mercenary jobs where they can. Those already in Africa, likewise.

But then this. https://www.lbc.co.uk/news/wagner-merce ... nge-putin/

the only thing that astonishes me. That people used to dealing with defectors using sledgehammers could seriously believe they would meet anything but the full might of Russia's security complex is beyond me. You get shot, hanged, slashed or gassed in (and outside of) Russia for being in any way disobedient uncle Volodya, but you leave with impunity after trying to stage a coup against him killing actual Russian soldiers? Gee. Prigozhin must have been way too drunk with himself (as we say over here - selbstbesoffen) to see the obvious.

The German newspapers cited a Wagner source saying the liquidation of Prigozhin was a "catastrophic" mistake. The source Richard is linking to sounds much more like the kind of Wagner we've all grown to hate and fear.

Only one thing is even more astonishing: the way that Volodya (and hence his people) keep holding to the line. A former Kremlin adviser was on the BBC news at lunchtime and it was put to him that those who defy Putin tend not to live very long. His response: "This is true, but you must not forget: Putin promised, very publicly, that he would not go after Prigozhin." And? So he lied - it's not like he spent January 2022 saying he had no intention of invading Ukraine. Or that he had anything to do with the Litvinenko and Skripal affairs. (Although some who know of what they speak have suggested that the poisoning of Skripal was such a monumental cock-up that while GRU operatives no doubt carried it out, it quite possibly wasn't a state-planned operation.)

Which leads on to another question. You challenge Putin, you die. This is how many dictators operate and contributes to their projection of strength. Putin included. So what, from Putin's perspective, is to be gained from denying he did it? Had he done it in foreign airspace, hmmm, various repercussions. But firmly within Russia, not even close to a border? Why even the pretence of a denial?

Though Arneb is right. What possessed Prigozhin and his mate to set foot in Russia, never mind get on a plane that took off from a Russian airfield, is a mystery.

If you were Prigozhin, and you thought you'd best just disappear (in spite of Putin saying he was safe), how would you do it?

g-one wrote:If you were Prigozhin, and you thought you'd best just disappear (in spite of Putin saying he was safe), how would you do it?

I think if he had lied flat in Belorussia, he would have been reasonably safe, as uncle Volodya would probably at least have hesitated before slapping Lukashenko over the nose. He had brokered the deal, after all, and spared Putin a lot of trouble. Also, somewhere in Africa, inside his cordon of loyal mercenaries, it would have been hard to get to him. Rigging his plane taking off from Moscow (or shooting it out of the sky) was way easier.

Meanwhile, uncle Volodya has offered his condolences to the bereaved families after "tragic" plane crash. Prigozhin was a "talented man with a difficult fate who had committed serious errors but also brought in results - for himself and, when I asked him, for the common cause. Especially in the last few months". Maybe this is Putin's greatest gift: Lying through his teeeth AND let everyone know he is lying, and enjoys what he really did. Would-be opponents, take heed.

Can’t claim this thought is original to me, as I saw it on the interwebs. But the thought is, a couple of months back, Putin saved the ICC months of investigative work, by admitting on television that the Russian government funded Wagner group.

Yes, indeed. And although Ramaphosa has a track record of reneging at the last minute on his ICC obligations, it was notable that Putin felt it necessary to send Lavrov to the BRICS summit instead and give his addresses by video link.