President Vladimir Putin said that the finances of Wagner mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin's catering firm would be investigated after his mutiny, saying Wagner and its founder had received almost $2 billion from Russia in the past year.
Putin initially vowed to crush the mutiny, comparing it to the wartime turmoil that ushered in the revolutions of 1917 and then a civil war, but hours later a deal was clinched to allow Prigozhin and some of his fighters to go to Belarus.
Speaking to soldiers from the Russian army at a meeting in the Kremlin, Putin said he had always respected Wagner's fighters, but that the fact was the group had been "fully financed" from the state budget.
He said it had received 86 billion roubles ($1 billion) from the defence ministry between May 2022 and May 2023.
In addition, Prigozhin's Concord catering company made 80 billion roubles from state contracts to supply food to the Russian army, Putin said.
"I do hope that, as part of this work, no one stole anything, or, let's say, stole less, but we will, of course, investigate all of this."
Prigozhin, whom Putin did not mention by name, could not be reached for immediate comment on Putin's remarks.
He said earlier this year that he had always financed Wagner but had looked for additional financing after the war began in Ukraine.
He said on Monday that he had not been trying to overthrow the Russian state and that he remained a patriot who was trying to settle scores with the defence ministry.
Meanwhile, the Belarusian state news agency BELTA quoted President Alexander Lukashenko as saying on Tuesday, that Belarus is not building any camps for the Wagner group.
"We offered them one of the abandoned military bases. Please - we have a fence, we have everything - put up your tents," Lukashenko said.
Under a deal brokered by Lukashenko late on Saturday that ended a mutiny by the Wagner fighters, they were allowed either to join Russia's regular armed forces, move with their leader Yevgeny Prigozhin into exile in Belarus, or simply return to their families.
Lukashenko was also quoted as saying there were no plans to open any Wagner recruitment centres in Belarus.
Missing man found alive in cellar 26 years later
China to always be friends with Russia says Xi
Slovak PM Fico no longer in life-threatening condition after being shot
Biden, Trump agree to June and September presidential debates
Indonesia's death toll rises to 67 from Sumatra floods, 20 still missing
