Closing Summary
It is midnight in Kyiv. Here is a roundup of the day’s key events:
Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, said he discussed the weekend’s turmoil in Russia in a phone call with the US president, Joe Biden, on Sunday and that the events had exposed the weakness of Vladimir Putin’s rule. In a statement, Zelenskiy called for global pressure to be exerted on Russia and said that he and Biden had also discussed expanding defence cooperation with an emphasis on long-range weapons.
Over the course of a day, the Ukrainian military allegedly advanced from 600 metres to 1,000 metres on the southern and northern flanks around Bakhmut, Serhiy Cherevaty, spokesman for the eastern group of forces, told Ukrainian news agencies. On Saturday afternoon, while Prigozhin was moving towards the Kremlin, the Ukraine military reported an offensive near the villages surrounding Bakhmut, taken by Wagner forces in May, after months of fighting.
Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, held a phone call with the Canadian prime minister, Justin Trudeau, saying that he was “grateful for [Trudeau’s] recent visit to Kyiv and to Canada and all Canadians for their continued support of Ukraine.” In a statement on Twitter, Zelenskiy wrote: “I spoke about the current situation on the battlefield and shared [Ukraine’s] assessments of the attempted coup in [Russia] and the impact of this situation on the course of hostilities.”
France’s president, Emmanuel Macron, said that the revolt lead by Russia’s Wagner mercenary group against the country’s leadership highlights divisions within the Russian government. Speaking to the Provence newspaper on Sunday, Macron said that Wagner’s march to Moscow, which came to an abrupt halt over the weekend, “shows the divisions that exist within the Russian camp, and the fragility of both its military and its auxiliary forces.”
Ukraine’s defence minister, Oleksii Reznikov, said that he had a conversation with US defence secretary Lloyd Austin on Sunday, describing the Russian authorities as “weak.” Reznikov wrote on Twitter: “We talked about recent events in Russia. We agree that the Russian authorities are weak and that withdrawing Russian troops from Ukraine is the best choice for the Kremlin. Russia would be better served to address its own issues.”
Lithuanian president Gitanas Nausėda warned that Nato will need to strengthen its eastern flank if Belarus becomes the new host of Wagner head Yevgeny Prigozhin. Following a state security council meeting on the mercenary group’s attempt to revolt against Russian military leadership, Nausėda said: “If Prigozhin or part of the Wagner group ends up in Belarus with unclear plans and unclear intentions, it will only mean that we need to further strengthen the security of our eastern borders.”
Wagner leader Yevgeny Prigozhin has agreed to leave Russia and ordered his fighters to withdraw from Rostov and halt their march on Moscow, under the terms of a deal negotiated by Belarus.
President Vladimir Putin has appeared on Russian state TV for the first time since the armed rebellion threatened to topple his regime, though the comments appear to have been recorded before the mutiny. Putin and his Belarusian counterpart Alexander Lukashenko spoke again by phone on Sunday morning, Belarus’ Belta news agency reported.
US spy agencies picked up information suggesting Wagner leader Yevgeny Prigozhin was planning to take action against Russia’s military leadership as early as mid-June, US media has reported.
Russian president Vladimir Putin is “obviously very afraid” and “probably hiding”, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy has said in his latest evening address.
All transport restrictions in Russia’s Rostov region – which was controlled by Wagner mutineers on Saturday - have been lifted, including those on highways, Russian news agencies reported on Sunday, citing local officials.
An adviser to the Ukrainian defence minister has described the Wagner rebellion in Russia as “the most ridiculous attempt at mutiny” ever.
There has been no change in the US nuclear posture after an armed rebellion in Russia, America’s secretary of state, Antony Blinken, has said. He added that the Wagner uprising was a “direct challenge to Putin’s authority” that shows “real cracks” in Russia’s military direction.
That’s it from me, Maya Yang, as we close the blog for today. Thank you for following along.
Here is the full statement released by Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, on his call with the US president, Joe Biden, earlier today:
I spoke with President @POTUS. A positive and inspiring conversation.
We discussed the course of hostilities and the processes taking place in Russia. The world must put pressure on Russia until international order is restored.
I thanked the @POTUS for the unflagging support of Ukraine, especially for Patriots.
It is important to further increase Ukraine’s capabilities to protect our skies. In this context, I also thanked him for the support of the fighter jet coalition.
We discussed further expansion of defense cooperation, with an emphasis on long-range weapons.
I am grateful for the readiness of the US and the American people to stand side by side with Ukraine until the full liberation of all our territories within internationally recognized borders.
We coordinated our positions on the eve of the @NATO Summit in Vilnius, discussed further work on the implementation of Peace Formula and preparations for the Global Peace Summit.
I held the first of a series of important phone calls - with 🇨🇦 Prime Minister @JustinTrudeau.
— Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) June 25, 2023
I’m grateful to him for his recent visit to Kyiv and to Canada and all Canadians for their continued support of Ukraine.
I spoke about the current situation on the battlefield and…
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