President Joe Biden says the United States and its allies sought to ensure that they gave Russian President Vladimir Putin no excuse to blame the Wagner Group’s brief insurrection on the West.
Biden was speaking after a 36-hour ‘putsh’ by the paramilitary group against the Russian military ended in their retreat after the intervention of Belarus. This saw the withdrawal of Wagner fighters back to barracks after soldiers aligned with the group’s leader Yevgeny Prigozhin threatened to move on Moscow.
The White House releases readouts over the weekend of calls with allies France, Germany, the UK and Canada indicating their discussions on developments in Russia while affirming their unwavering support for Ukraine.
Biden says, “The situation began to develop and as it did, I directed my national security team to monitor closely and report to me hour by hour. I instructed them to prepare for a range of scenarios. I also convened our key allies on a Zoom call to make sure we were all on the same page. It’s critical that we’re coordinated in our response and coordinated in what we anticipate. We agree. They agree with me that we had to make sure we gave Putin no excuse, we emphasized we gave Putin no excuse to blame this on the West, to blame this on NATO. We made clear that we were not involved. We had nothing to do with it. This is part of a struggle within the Russian system.”
Biden adds it was too early to reach definitive conclusions about internal developments in Russia but that the focus of the western alliance supporting Ukraine was that it should remain steadfast – here referencing a discussion he had with Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
“No matter what happened in Russia, we, the United States, should continue to support Ukraine’s defense and its sovereignty and its territorial integrity. He and I agreed to follow up and stay in constant contact. I’m also in constant contact with our allies to maintain our coordination.”
Biden says US had nothing to do with Wagner Group’s mutiny
Russian media reports that intelligence services are investigating whether Western spy agencies played a role in the aborted mutiny, but the White House says it maintained good, direct communications with the Russians throughout the course of the weekend and expected that to continue.
White House National Security Spokesperson, John Kirby says, “It’s just too soon to know after the weekend’s events where Wagner goes as an entity or where Mr. Prigozhin goes in terms of his leadership of it. It’s just too soon to know how this is going to play out, whether in Africa or elsewhere, certainly in Ukraine. And I am not. I have said before, and I’ll say it again today, I’m not going to do armchair quarterbacking of the counter-offensive from this podium. It’s up to President Zelenskyy to speak to. Our focus is on making sure that they have what they need to succeed, whether it’s training, tools, equipment. And you’re going to see another round of support announced from this administration for Ukraine in terms of weapons and capabilities this week. So we are focused on that. That’s what the that’s where our heads are.”
Kirby reiterated the US Government’s official line that regime change in Russia was not part of Washington’s policy, rather making sure Ukraine can succeed on the battlefield.
