LIVE: Moscow accuses Wagner head of mutiny, after he vows to oust Russia’s military leadership

04:30am: Russian military convoy on the move, says governor

The government of the southern Russian Voronezh region urged residents to avoid the M-4 north-south motorway connecting Moscow to southern regions because a military convoy was on the move there, after the leader of the Wagner private militia suggested that he planned to oust Russia’s military leadership.

The government said on its Telegram channel that the situation was under control and that measures were being taken to ensure public safety.

04:26am: Wagner chief says his 25,000-strong force ‘ready to die’

The chief of mercenary group Wagner said on Saturday that his 25,000-strong force was “ready to die” as he vowed to topple Russia’s military leadership.

“All of us are ready to die. All 25,000, and then another 25,000,” Yevgeny Prigozhin said in a new audio message. “We are dying for the Russian people.”

03:30am: Wagner chief vows to topple Russian military leadership

The head of the Wagner mercenary group vowed Saturday to “go to the end” to topple the Russian military leadership, whom he accused of launching strikes on his men, while the country’s prosecutor general said he was under investigation for “armed rebellion”.

“We are going onwards and we will go to the end,” Yevgeny Prigozhin, 62, said in an audio message.

“We will destroy everything that stands in our way,” he added in the most audacious challenge to President Vladimir Putin since the start of the offensive in Ukraine last year.

He later claimed his forces had shot down a Russian military helicopter.

“A helicopter has just now opened fire at a civilian column. It has been shot down by units of PMC Wagner,” he said.

Prigozhin earlier said his forces, who have spearheaded much of Russia’s offensive, had entered the southern Russian region of Rostov but did not provide any proof and AFP could not independently verify his claims.

In Moscow, authorities have tightened security measures, with critical facilities “put under reinforced protection”, the TASS state-run news agency reported, citing a law enforcement source.

The FSB security service urged Wagner fighters to “take measures to detain” Prigozhin.

Putin was being given regular updates on the unfolding tensions between the Wagner group and the defence ministry, the Kremlin said.

Prosecutor General Igor Krasnov had informed Putin of “the initiation of a criminal case in connection with an attempt to organise an armed rebellion,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.

03:11am: Southern Russian governor tells citizens to stay home as boss of Wagner militia mutinies

The governor of southern Russia’s Rostov region adjoining Ukraine told residents early on Saturday to remain calm and stay indoors, as the leader of the Wagner private militia led what Russia calls a mutiny against the Moscow defence establishment.

“Law enforcement agencies are doing everything necessary to ensure the safety of residents of the area. I ask everyone to stay calm and not to leave home unless necessary,” Vassily Golubev said in a message on his Telegram channel just before 4 a.m. (0100 GMT).

Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin had said his forces had crossed from Ukraine into the Rostov region. Golubev’s message did not say whether Prigozhin had entered Rostov.

Kyiv, meanwhile, said the major thrust in its counteroffensive against Moscow’s invasion had yet to be launched. “The main blow is still to come,” Deputy Defence Minister Hanna Maliar told Ukrainian television

02:30am: Moscow accuses Wagner head of mutiny, he says his forces entered Russia

Russian mercenary boss Yevgeny Prigozhin said on Saturday his Wagner fighters had crossed the border into Russia from Ukraine and were prepared to go “all the way” against Moscow’s military, hours after the Kremlin accused him of armed mutiny.

As a long-running standoff between Prigozhin and the military top brass appeared to come to a head, Russia’s FSB security service opened a criminal case against him, TASS news agency said. It called on the Wagner private military company forces to ignore his orders and arrest him. 

Wagner fighters had entered the southern Russian city of Rostov, Prigozhin said in an audio recording posted on Telegram. He said he and his men would destroy anyone who stood in their way.

Prigozhin earlier said, without providing evidence, that Russia’s military leadership had killed a huge number of his troops in an air strike and vowed to punish them. 

He said his actions were not a military coup. But in a frenzied series of audio messages, in which the sound of his voice sometimes varied and could not be independently verified, he appeared to suggest that his 25,000-strong militia was en route to oust the leadership of the defence ministry in Moscow.

Security was stepped up on Friday night at government buildings, transport facilities and other key locations in Moscow, TASS reported, citing a source at a security service.

Russian President Vladimir Putin was getting around-the-clock updates, TASS said, while the White House said it was monitoring the situation and would consult with allies. 

Kyiv, meanwhile, said the major thrust in its counteroffensive against Moscow’s invasion had yet to be launched. “The main blow is still to come,” Deputy Defence Minister Hanna Maliar told Ukrainian television.

Key developments from Friday, June 23:

Russia’s FSB security services launched a criminal probe into calls to stage “armed mutiny” after the head of the Wagner mercenary group vowed to resist Moscow’s military leadership, officials said Friday. The announcement follows statements from Yevgeny Prigozhin accusing Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu of ordering a rocket strike on Wagner’s field camps in Ukraine. 

Read yesterday’s liveblog to see how all the day’s events unfolded.

(FRANCE 24 with AFP, AP and Reuters)