- Russian President Vladimir Putin’s plane left Moscow Saturday morning, according to flight data.
- Presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Putin had not fled and “is working at the Kremlin.”
- Wagner mercenaries appear to be headed for Moscow in what some are calling an attempted coup.
Russian President Vladimir Putin’s plane took off from Moscow early Saturday morning, heading towards St. Petersburg before disappearing from flight tracking radar. Putin’s presidential plane left at 14:16 Moscow time, according to FlightRadar data retrieved by NEXTA.
While it’s not clear where the plane was headed, it disappeared from tracking systems near Tver, a major city north of Moscow. Presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov denied Putin had fled the city, saying he “is working at the Kremlin,” according to The Independent and Ukrinform.
The news comes as Wagner forces appear to be descending on Moscow. On Friday, Wagner leader Yevgeny Prigozhin rebelled against Russia’s military leadership, accusing Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu of ordering an air strike on Wagner troops in Ukraine.
Prigozhin claimed to be leading 25,000 men in a so-called “march for justice” to overthrow Russia’s Ministry of Defense. He said military leadership had been misleading Putin about the war in Ukraine and mismanaging military resources and assets.
The “march” follows months of tensions between Prigozhin and Russia’s top military leaders. Read the original article on Business Insider