Wagner mercenary group chief Yevgeniy Prigozhin rejected an offer to his troops in Ukraine to serve as a unit in the Russian army, president Vladimir Putin claimed.
While “many nodded” when he made his proposal, Mr Prigozhin rejected the idea, responding that “the boys won’t agree with such a decision”, he added.
“All of them could have gathered in one place and continued to serve,” the Russian president told Kommersant newspaper.
“And nothing would have changed for them. They would have been led by the same person who had been their real commander all along.”
During the revolt that lasted less than 24 hours, Mr Prigozhin’s mercenaries quickly swept through the southern Russian city of Rostov-on-Don and captured the military headquarters there without firing a shot, before driving to within about 200km (125 miles) of Moscow.
Mr Prigozhin described the move as a “march of justice” to oust the military leaders, who demanded that Wagner sign contracts with the defence ministry by 1 July.
Meanwhile, France is stated to join Britain in supplying Ukraine with long-range cruise missiles, a move that allows Ukrainian forces to hit Russian troops and supplies deep behind front lines.
