Russian President Vladimir Putin had assigned Russia's Federal Security Service to assassinate Wagner mercenary group founder Yevgeny Prigozhin, Ukrainian intelligence claimed on Friday.
Major General Kyrylo Budanov told the War Zone media outlet that any assassination attempts that Russia tries will take time to carry out. However, Budanov also said that he isn't sure if FSB will successfully carry out the assassination. The Ukrainian military official also stated that Kyiv has for a while has been aware of Prigozhin's mutiny plans.
Furthermore, Budanov also said that Prigozhin nor his mercenary group will not create any problems for Ukraine in Belarus, Newsweek reported him as saying. The reason for this statement is because of an undisclosed agreement between Prigozhin and the Kremlin earlier where the Wagner leader and his contractors were allowed to leave for Belarus. Furthermore, satellite photos that were recently taken suggest that Belarus is building an army camp for Wagner personnel, according to multiple reports.
Earlier this week, the FSB said it closed the criminal case over Prigozhin's armed insurrection with the Wagner rebellion, The Kyiv Independent reported.
Prigozhin and Wagner's rebellion
Prigozhin last month launched what the Independent described as a "march for justice" against the Russian military after a missile had allegedly targeted the mercenary group's troops while they were stationed in Ukraine, but the rebellion was only brief, lasting for less than a day.
Newsweek was told by senior intelligence analyst Zev Faintuch from the security firm Global Guardian, that the Wagner founder was still useful to Putin, but that the Russian president is merely waiting for the right time to carry the assassination out.