Jet linked to Prigozhin arrives in Belarus, Wagner Group chief says purported mutiny was just a 'protest'

Neither Yevgeny Prigozhin nor his fighters will face prosecution by Russian authorities after their short-lived armed rebellion

A jet linked to Wagner Group chief Yevgeny Prigozhin landed in Belarus from Russia on Tuesday, days after he called off his armed rebellion against the Russian military. 

Flight tracking website Flightradar24 showed an Embraer Legacy 600 jet, bearing identification codes that match a plane linked to Prigozhin in U.S. sanctions documents, descending to landing altitude near the Belarus capital Minsk, Reuters reported. It first appeared on the tracking site above Rostov, the southern Russian city Prigozhin's fighters captured on Saturday.

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko confirmed the jet carried Prigozhin to exile after the Kremlin said it made a deal where Prigozhin would move to Belarus and his fighters would not be prosecuted. Lukashenko said Tuesday that Prigozhin has moved to Belarus and that Wagner Group troops would be welcome to stay in the country "for some time" at their own expense, according to the Associated Press. 

Russian authorities announced Tuesday a criminal investigation into the Wagner Group's purported mutiny has been closed, with no charges filed against anyone involved. 

The Federal Security Service said its investigation revealed that the participants in the mutiny had "ceased actions directly aimed at committing the crime," Reuters reported, citing Russia's RIA state news agency. 

Despite Russian President Vladimir Putin calling them traitors, the Kremlin stated over the weekend that it would not prosecute Prigozhin and his troops after he pulled his men back on Saturday to avoid bloodshed, less than 24 hours after the revolt began. Prigozhin said he would go to Belarus at the invitation of Lukashenko. However, details of his proposed journey into exile were not made public, and his whereabouts remained unconfirmed for three days.

His last public appearance was Saturday night, when he was seen smiling and high-fiving bystanders while an SUV carried him out of Rostov after Wagner Group forces made their about-face.  

Putin delivered a speech Monday night, when he condemned the mutiny leaders but did not mention Prigozhin by name. Putin said Wagner fighters would be allowed to leave for Belarus, join the Russian military or go home. 

Prigozhin avoiding prosecution contrasts with how the Kremlin has been responding to people staging anti-government protests. Many opposition figures in Russia received lengthy prison sentences and are serving time in penal colonies known for harsh conditions.

Until Prigozhin's mutiny, the 62-year-old ex-convict and mercenary leader was a long-time Putin ally whose Wagner fighters participated in the bloodiest battles of Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Prigozhin claimed he launched the rebellion to oust Russian military leaders who he had accused of corruption and incompetence in prosecuting the war. 

Wagner mercenaries ostensibly seized control of Russian military facilities in the city of Rostov-on-Don Saturday morning and had nearly advanced to Moscow later that day when Prigozhin called off his march. The only reported incident of violence was a confrontation between Wagner forces and a Russian helicopter that ended with the aircraft being shot down, he said. 

"We went as a demonstration of protest, not to overthrow the government of the country," Prigozhin said in an audio message posted to social media Monday. 

Putin confirmed on Monday that Russian pilots had been killed fighting Wagner mercenaries and thanked Russians for remaining united during the crisis. 

He said Russia's enemies wanted to see the country "choke in bloody civil strife," but Russia would not succumb to "any blackmail, any attempt to create internal turmoil," according to Reuters.

The short-lived rebellion was seen as the biggest challenge to Putin's rule in his more than 20 years in power. 

On Monday night, the Kremlin showed Putin meeting with top security, law enforcement and military officials, including Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, whose removal was demanded by Prigozhin. Earlier on Monday, the Defense Ministry released a video of Shoigu inspecting troops in Ukraine.

Prigozhin said Monday that the Belarusian leadership proposed solutions that would allow the Wagner Group to operate "in a legal jurisdiction." He provided no further details on the extent of those operations. 

Fox News' Landon Mion, Reuters and The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

附译文

瓦格纳集团负责人表示，与普里戈津有关的喷气式飞机抵达白俄罗斯，所谓的兵变只是一场“抗议”

叶夫根尼·普里戈津和他的战士在短暂的武装叛乱后都不会面临俄罗斯当局的起诉

周二，一架与瓦格纳集团（Wagner Group）总裁叶夫根尼·普里戈津（Yevgeny Prigozhin）有关的喷气式飞机从俄罗斯降落在白俄罗斯，几天前，普里戈津取消了对俄罗斯军方的武装叛乱。

据路透社报道，飞行跟踪网站Flightradar24显示，一架巴西航空工业公司Legacy 600喷气式飞机降落到白俄罗斯首都明斯克附近的降落高度，其识别码与美国制裁文件中与普里戈津有关的一架飞机相匹配。它首次出现在罗斯托夫上空的追踪现场，罗斯托夫是俄罗斯南部城市普里戈津的战斗机于周六捕获的。

白俄罗斯总统亚历山大·卢卡申科证实，这架喷气式飞机载着普里戈津流亡海外，此前克里姆林宫表示，已达成协议，普里戈津将移居白俄罗斯，他的战士不会被起诉。据美联社报道，卢卡申科周二表示，普里戈津已转移到白俄罗斯，欢迎瓦格纳集团的部队自费在该国停留“一段时间”。

俄罗斯当局星期二宣布，对瓦格纳集团所谓兵变的刑事调查已经结束，没有对任何涉案人员提出指控。

路透社援引俄罗斯RIA国家通讯社的报道称，联邦安全局表示，其调查显示，兵变参与者已“停止了直接旨在犯罪的行动”。

尽管俄罗斯总统弗拉基米尔·普京（Vladimir Putin）称他们为叛徒，但克里姆林宫在周末表示，不会起诉普里戈津及其部队，因为普里戈津在叛乱开始不到24小时后，于周六将其手下撤回以避免流血。普里戈津表示，他将应卢卡申科的邀请前往白俄罗斯。然而，他计划流亡的细节没有公开，他的下落在三天内仍未得到证实。

他最后一次公开露面是在周六晚上，在瓦格纳集团的部队做出改变后，一辆SUV将他抬出罗斯托夫时，有人看到他面带微笑，向旁观者击掌致意。

普京星期一晚上发表讲话，谴责叛变领导人，但没有提到普里戈津的名字。普京表示，瓦格纳战士将被允许前往白俄罗斯，加入俄罗斯军队或回国。

普里戈辛避免被起诉，这与克里姆林宫对人们举行反政府抗议的反应形成了鲜明对比。俄罗斯许多反对派人士被判处长期监禁，目前正在以恶劣条件著称的流放地服刑。

在普里戈津叛变之前，这位62岁的前罪犯和雇佣军领袖一直是普京的长期盟友，瓦格纳的战士参加了俄罗斯入侵乌克兰最血腥的战斗。普里戈津声称，他发动叛乱是为了驱逐俄罗斯军事领导人，他指责这些领导人在起诉战争时腐败无能。

周六上午，瓦格纳雇佣军表面上夺取了俄罗斯罗斯托夫市军事设施的控制权，当天晚些时候，普里戈津取消了他的进军，他们几乎已经挺进莫斯科。他说，唯一报道的暴力事件是瓦格纳部队与一架俄罗斯直升机之间的对峙，最终飞机被击落。

普里戈辛周一在社交媒体上发布的一条音频消息中说：“我们去是为了抗议，而不是推翻国家政府。”。

普京周一证实，俄罗斯飞行员在与瓦格纳雇佣军的战斗中丧生，并感谢俄罗斯人在危机期间保持团结。

据路透社报道，他表示，俄罗斯的敌人希望看到该国“陷入血腥的内乱”，但俄罗斯不会屈服于“任何勒索，任何制造内部动荡的企图”。

这场短暂的叛乱被视为普京执政20多年来对其统治的最大挑战。

周一晚上，克里姆林宫显示普京会见了包括国防部长谢尔盖·绍伊古在内的高级安全、执法和军事官员，普里戈辛要求将其免职。周一早些时候，国防部发布了绍伊古视察乌克兰军队的视频。

普里戈津周一表示，白俄罗斯领导层提出了允许瓦格纳集团“在法律管辖范围内”运营的解决方案。他没有提供这些运营范围的进一步细节。

福克斯新闻的Landon Mion、路透社和美联社对此报道做出了贡献。