Russia's war in Ukraine and fallout from Wagner insurrection

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said Tuesday that Wagner had been offered the use of some the country's abandoned land following its short-lived rebellion but denied building camps on Belarusian territory for the mercenary group.

“We are not building any camps yet. But if they want, we will accommodate them. Set up tents, please. But for now they are in Luhansk (in eastern Ukraine) in their camps,” Lukashenko said.

Wagner troops remain in Ukraine after the weekend mutiny, the US Defense Department said Tuesday.

Pentagon press secretary Brig. Gen. Patrick Ryder declined to speculate Tuesday on Wagner forces' "specific disposition and whether they may or may not move (or) be moving."

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday alluded to a potential probe into claims that billions of rubles of state funds were spent on Wagner, saying “we” will “deal with that.”

In an address to security personnel in Moscow, Putin claimed the mercenary group had been completely funded by the Russian state, with 86 billion rubles (about $1 billion) funneled to the group in the past 12 months. Putin also claimed the Concord company, owned by Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin, received 80 billion rubles from Moscow for supplying food and providing food services.

The shadowy Wagner force had long served Moscow’s interests, advancing Putin’s foreign policy and influence, particularly in Africa.

Some of Prigozhin’s operations appeared to be partly self-funded, with various shell companies staking claims to oil and gas facilities and vying for access to gold and other riches.

In February, the European Union sanctioned a Russian national and a Wagner subsidiary in Sudan, Meroe Gold, for facilitating the exploitation of Sudan’s gold wealth, after a CNN investigation into the group’s activities last July.

On Tuesday, the US Treasury Department also imposed sanctions on four companies and one person tied to Wagner that “have engaged in illicit gold dealings to fund the Wagner Group to sustain and expand its armed forces, including in Ukraine and Africa.”

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko on Tuesday talked up his role in halting Wagner's insurrection in Russia, and said the mercenary group's boss Yevgeny Prigozhin had arrived in Belarus as part of the deal to end the brief rebellion.

Two planes linked to Prigozhin landed at an airbase near Minsk Tuesday morning, according to satellite images — though his exact whereabouts remain unknown.

Meanwhile in Ukraine, at least four people were killed and dozens of others injured after Russian missiles struck Kramatorsk on Tuesday, Ukrainian officials said. President Volodymyr Zelensky called the attack "a manifestation of terror."

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NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said a clear message was sent to Moscow and Minsk that “NATO is there to protect every ally, every inch of NATO territory.”

Stoltenberg made the remarks at a joint news conference at The Hague on Tuesday, alongside the leaders of seven NATO countries.

The NATO chief said the alliance is ready to defend members against Russia and Belarus, and that the events involving the Wagner rebellion were “internal Russian matters.” 

When asked by journalists about any security issues that may come up with Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin and his forces being transferred to Belarus, all officials stated that it is too early to make any final judgments. 

Russian missiles struck the busy city center of the east Ukrainian city of Kramatorsk and a nearby village on Tuesday, killing at least four people and injuring dozens, Ukrainian officials said.

A 17-year-old girl was among those killed, and an 8-month-old baby was among the 47 injured, according to Ukrainian officials.

The attack quickly prompted accusations that Russian forces had targeted civilians.

Restaurants in the targeted plaza are popular with Kramatorsk residents and with the military; RIA Pizza, one of the establishments, is often frequented by soldiers and journalists.

An eyewitness to the aftermath of the strike in Kramatorsk city described up to a dozen people being pulled from the rubble. It was not clear if these people were dead or alive, the man told CNN teams on the ground.

A Ukrainian soldier assisting rescue efforts told CNN that the victims he saw were “mostly young people, military and civilians; there are small children.”

The soldier, who asked to be identified only by the call sign Alex, said there had been a banquet for 45 people at one of the restaurants when the strike occurred, and that it hit “right in the center of the cafe.”

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Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko claims he convinced Russian leader Vladimir Putin not to “destroy” the Wagner group and its chief Yevgeny Prigozhin, talking up his role in halting the mercenaries’ military insurrection that caused crisis in Russia at the weekend.

Lukashenko on Tuesday described his view of the negotiations that led to Prigozhin ending his march towards Moscow, and said the oligarch is now in Belarus per the deal.

“The most dangerous thing, as I understand it, is not what the situation was, but how it could develop and its consequences,” Lukashenko said, according to Belarussian state media.

“I also realized there was a harsh decision taken — to destroy. I suggested Putin not to hurry. Let’s talk with Prigozhin, with his commanders.”

Lukashenko — a longtime ally of the Russian President — said Putin told him: “Listen, Alex, it’s useless. (Prigozhin) doesn’t even pick up the phone, he doesn’t want to talk to anyone.”

But Lukashenko said he managed to get hold of the Wagner boss and, according to his account, warned he would be “crushed like a bug” if Wagner troops continued their advance to the Russian capital.

The Kremlin has credited Lukashenko with helping to deescalate the situation, though the Belarus leader’s account of events has not been corroborated by Putin or Prigozhin.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Lukashenko was able to draw on a personal relationship with Prigozhin to reach the deal, which would also see Wagner troops and equipment absorbed by the Russian military.

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Two planes linked to Wagner CEO Yevgeny Prigozhin landed at a Belarusian airbase outside the country's capital on Tuesday morning, according to a satellite image from BlackSky. 

Prigozhin's exact whereabouts are still unknown. He hasn’t been seen in any videos or photos since he left the Rostov-on-Don military headquarters Saturday evening. 

However, Belarusian state media quoted Belarus’ President Alexander Lukashenko on Tuesday, saying that Prigozhin is in Belarus.

The satellite image taken Tuesday morning by BlackSky shows the two planes — with serial numbers RA-20795 and RA-02878 — sitting on the tarmac at Machulishchy Airbase, just outside Minsk. Additional satellite imagery from BlackSky, as well as CNN’s analysis of the planes' measurements, confirmed the planes arrived within the last 24 hours and matched the dimensions of the Prigozhin-linked planes.

Flight tracking data from FlightRadar24 indicated that the planes landed near Minsk at around 8 a.m. local time. Both planes had their transponders turned off before landing, obscuring their exact landing location. 

Two sources — a senior European intelligence official and a source familiar with Prigozhin’s planes — confirmed to CNN the planes are linked to the Wagner boss but did not know if Prigozhin was on board.

The movement of Prigozhin’s planes has been closely watched in the aftermath of his attempted insurrection over the weekend.  

The US Treasury Department on Tuesday imposed sanctions on four companies involved in “gold dealing” and one person they say made “weapons deals” tied to the Wagner Group.

The announcement of the sanctions comes days after the short-lived mutiny led by the head of the mercenary group’s leader, Yevegny Prigozhin.

They target companies in Russia, the United Arab Emirates, and the Central African Republic that “have engaged in illicit gold dealings to fund the Wagner Group to sustain and expand its armed forces, including in Ukraine and Africa.”

The targeted individual, Andrey Nikolayevich Ivanov, is a Russian executive in the Wagner Group who “worked closely with Prigozhin’s entity Africa Politology and senior Malian government officials on weapons deals, mining concerns, and other Wagner Group activities in Mali,” according to a Treasury Department release.

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US Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced a new $500 million security assistance package for Ukraine Tuesday.

According to a statement, the package includes:

It marks the 41st drawdown of equipment from Defense Department inventories for Ukraine since August 2021, according to the department.

"The enduring courage and solidarity of the people of Ukraine continues to inspire the world. Russia started this unprovoked war against Ukraine," Blinken said in his statement.

Blinken went on to reaffirm US commitment to Ukraine.