Moscow hits out over Biden’s ‘unacceptable’ Wagner boss dig at Putin – Ukraine-Russia war live.

Joe Biden’s remarks about Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin’s suspected death in a plane crash near Moscow were unacceptable, Russia’s deputy foreign minister Sergei Ryabkov has said.

The US president said on Wednesday that he was not surprised by the reports of Mr Prigozhin’s death, adding that not much happens in Russia that Vladimir Putin is not behind.


The crash, which killed 10 people on Wednesday, is widely claimed to be an assassination to avenge Mr Prigozhin’s mutiny in June that challenged Russia’s military leadership.

After 24 hours of silence on the matter, Vladimir Putin appeared to eulogise Mr Prigozhin as “a talented businessman” who made “serious mistakes”, and sent his condolences to the families of those killed.



Kyiv’s military, meanwhile, claimed further gains in the Zaporizhizia region, where the Institute for the Study of War think-tank said geolocated footage suggested Ukraine was now advancing towards Russia’s second line of defence, after a dramatic breakthrough near the village of Robotyne.

Russia also accused Ukraine of firing a missile towards Moscow and claimed to have downed scores of drones targeting annexed Crimea.

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KEY POINTS
Russia says Joe Biden’s jibe about Vladimir Putin was ‘unacceptable'
Prigozhin plane crash caused by explosion, US spy chiefs suspect
Putin says Yevgeny Prigozhin made ‘serious mistakes'
Ukraine ‘pressing towards Russia’s second line of defence' near Robotyne
Russia accuses Ukraine of huge drone attack on Crimea
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30 minutes ago
Flight records found at site of private jet crash
The flight recorders from the jet crash in Tver where Yevgeny Prigozhin was allegedly killed, Russia's Investigative Committee has said.

According to Russian authorities, the private jet crashed on Wednesday, killing all 10 people on board.

Although, experts have doubted the Kremlin's official line and many suspect it was a state-sanctioned hit after the Wagner chief challenged Putin's authority.

Matt Drake25 August 2023 18:08
38 minutes ago
German security official hopes someone is indicted for the sabotage of the Nord Stream pipelines
Germany’s top security official says she hopes prosecutors will find sufficient evidence to indict whoever carried out an attack on the Nord Stream gas pipelines in the Baltic Sea last year. Pipelines were damaged after explosions on September 26, 2022. The pipelines were built to carry Russian natural gas to Germany.

The sabotage added to tensions over the war in Ukraine as European countries moved to wean themselves off Russian energy sources, but the culprit remains a mystery. Germany, Sweden and Denmark have investigated the attack though been tight-lipped about their findings. In an interview with Der Spiegel magazine published Friday, German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser said: “I hope that the (German) federal prosecutor will find enough clues to indict the perpetrators. “We must bring such crimes to court,” she said. “It also strengthens citizens’ confidence in the state of law when it succeeds in clearing up such complex cases.”

German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser addresses a press conference on August 23, 2023

(AFP via Getty Images)
Matt Drake25 August 2023 18:00
1 hour ago
Pictured, debris recovered at plane crash site
Pictures have emerged of workers removing the debris of a private jet that crashed near the village of Kuzhenkino, Tver region that supposedly had Wagner leader Yevgeny Prigozhin onboard.

US intelligence assessment has found that the plane crash was intentionally caused by an explosion.

The Kremlin said that Western suggestions that Prigozhin had been killed on its orders were an "absolute lie" while declining to definitively confirm his death, citing the need to wait for test results.

A truck carries a part of a private jet crashed

(AP)
A truck carries a part of a private jet that crashed near the village of Kuzhenkino, Tver region, Russia

(AP)
A truck carries a part of a private jet crashed near the village of Kuzhenkino

(AP)
Matt Drake25 August 2023 17:30
1 hour ago
I urged mercenary Prigozhin to ‘watch out’ says Belarus leader
Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said on Friday that he had warned Russian mercenary chiefs Yevgeny Prigozhin and Dmitry Utkin to watch out for possible threats to their lives, and he insisted that Wagner fighters would remain in Belarus.

Yevgeny Prigozhin had twice dismissed concerns raised by the Belarusian leader about possible threats to his life, Lukashenko said.

Lukashenko said that during the mutiny he had warned Prigozhin that he would “die” if he continued to march on Moscow, to which he said Prigozhin had answered:

“‘To hell with it - I will die’.”

The Belarus president dismissed claims that Putin was responsible for the plane crash that reportedly killed Prigozhin.

Lukashenko, both an old acquaintance of Prigozhin and a close ally of Russia, said: “I know Putin: he is calculating, very calm, even tardy.

“I cannot imagine that Putin did it, that Putin is to blame. It’s just too rough and unprofessional a job.”

<p>Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko gestures before a press conference in Minsk</p>
Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko gestures before a press conference in Minsk

(REUTERS)
Matt Drake25 August 2023 15:46
3 hours ago
Estonia PM Kallas under pressure to quit over husband's Russia ties
Estonia’s Prime Minister Kaja Kallas faced pressure to resign on Friday after reports that her husband has part ownership of a company that has kept operations in Russia since Moscow invaded Ukraine.

Two major Estonian newspapers called on her to resign and two opinion polls found a majority of respondents thought she should step down. Kallas has said she does not believe her husband’s companies have done anything wrong, while her husband said he was selling his stake in the company in question.

Kallas, who has urged European businesses to cut ties with Moscow, has been a leading critic of Russia in the European Union and Nato, and was considered by some to be a potential future secretary general of the military bloc.

Estonian public broadcaster ERR reported this week that Stark Logistics, an Estonian company in which Kallas’ husband Arvo Hallik indirectly owns a 25% share, has been supplying an aerosol container factory in Russia, owned by another Estonian company.

It has earned 1.5 million euros from serving the factory since the beginning of the war, Estonian daily Eesti Paevaleht reported.

<p>Pictured, Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas </p>
Pictured, Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas

(REUTERS)
Matt Drake25 August 2023 15:30
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Ukraine's Zelenskiy and Turkish minister discuss Black Sea grain corridor
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy met Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan in Kyiv on Friday to discuss the Black Sea grain export deal that Russia quit last month.

Zelenskiy wrote on the Telegram messaging app: “Many important issues were discussed. (Ukraine’s) Peace Formula. Preparations for the Global Peace Summit (planned by Ukraine). Risks posed by the Russian blockade of the Black Sea grain corridor.”

The deal brokered by Turkey and the United Nations had allowed the safe Black Sea export of Ukrainian grain. Ankara has been trying to persuade Moscow to return to the agreement.

<p>Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskiy meets with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan</p>
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskiy meets with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan.