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Kyiv's busy week: Wagner revolt aftermath and a Pence visit
Summary
A look back at 30 June 2023, days after the Wagner rebellion ended, as Ukraine's counteroffensive continued and a former US vice-president visited Kyiv.
What had the Wagner rebellion changed by 30 June 2023? The reports from the preceding days suggested a Russian crisis that ended quickly, while fighting in Ukraine carried on.
The rebellion and its settlement
On 24 June, Yevgeny Prigozhin, head of the Wagner Group, warned that his troops would march on Moscow unless Russian military leadership met him for talks. Russian president Vladimir Putin addressed the nation and said a coup d'état attempt was under way. The same day, Wagner withdrew after Prigozhin, Putin and Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko negotiated a deal to end the rebellion.
As later background describes it, the agreement foresaw the criminal case against Prigozhin for armed rebellion being closed, Wagner moving to field camps, and Prigozhin going to Belarus. On 27 June, Lukashenko confirmed that Prigozhin had arrived in Belarus under the agreement reached with the Russian government.
The front line and foreign support
Ukraine's military operations continued alongside these events. On 26 June, Deputy Defence Minister Hanna Maliar said Ukrainian forces had recaptured the uninhabited village of Rivnopil in Donetsk Oblast, the ninth village retaken in the previous month.
Foreign support also continued. On 26 June, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced a AU$110 million military aid package for Ukraine.
A visitor in Kyiv
On 29 June, the day before the date covered here, former US Vice President Mike Pence made an unannounced visit to Kyiv.
Taken together, the reports from 24 to 29 June showed a short-lived mutiny settled by negotiation, Prigozhin in Belarus, and Ukraine still advancing in Donetsk Oblast and receiving foreign backing and visitors.
