House Intel Chairman: Prigozhin’s Russian Accomplices Identified

Daily Wire NewsJune 25, 2023

House Intelligence Committee Chairman: Prigozhin Had Multiple Accomplices in Russia

House Intelligence Committee Chairman Mike Turner (R-OH) revealed on Sunday that Yevgeny Prigozhin, the mastermind behind the movement of his forces from Ukraine to within two hours of Moscow in less than a day, had a network of accomplices within Russia.

Turner’s remarks come after Prigozhin successfully transported thousands of his Wagner troops across hundreds of miles in Russia, with the intention of confronting the country’s military leadership. However, they halted their advance roughly 100 miles outside Moscow and were ordered to turn back.

“And then entering into Moscow — entering into Russia itself and taking their convoy to Moscow, that really shows to the basic issue of whether or not Putin controls his military,” Turner said. “For any government to have stability, they have to control their military. Obviously Prigozhin, in order to make it that distance, has to have accomplices.”

Turner raised questions about the absence of the Russian air force in preventing this operation. He emphasized that this issue will have implications for Putin both domestically and internationally, as an authoritarian government relies on its assertion of power to maintain control.

“You know, where was the air force?” he asked. “Where was the Russian air force in preventing this? That’s going to be an issue that — that Putin is going to have to deal with both internationally and domestically, is his government, as an authoritarian government depends, on its assertion of power, force, in order to be able to contain — to continue to wield power, and that certainly is going to be an issue.”

Turner acknowledged that he could not disclose specific intelligence on the situation but assured that U.S. officials are closely monitoring it.

“[Prigozhin]’s a military guy,” Turner added. “Remember, this is like a 12-hour trip from Ukraine to Moscow, and he got within two hours of Moscow. Now, being a military guy, he understands the logistics and really the assistance that he’s going to need to do that. This is not a weekend trip he’s taking, taking his convoy, and his military convoy, up to Moscow.”

According to Turner, there are several accomplices involved, including Russian individuals on the Ukraine border who evidently support the Wagner group rather than the Russian government. He emphasized that such an operation would require significant planning and execution.

“There’s a number of accomplices, including, as we saw, some of the Russian people on the border with Ukraine who clearly support the Wagner group, in contrast to their support for the Russian government,” he added. “This is something that would have had to been planned for a significant amount of time to be executed in the manner in which it was.”