Biden unsurprised by report of Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigozhin’s death

U.S. President Joe Biden responded to reports of the death of Russian mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin in a plane crash by stating that not much happens in Russia without President Vladimir Putin’s involvement. Analysts suggested that the incident could be a message from Putin to warn potential betrayers or to show support for the Russian military, which Prigozhin had undermined with a failed armed mutiny in June. Russian authorities confirmed that Prigozhin was listed as a passenger on the crashed private jet, although RushHourDaily could not independently verify this information. The White House stated that Biden had been briefed on the crash but did not have definitive information about what had occurred. Biden expressed his lack of surprise at the news, highlighting Putin’s involvement in most events in Russia. Prigozhin, who led the mutiny against Russia’s top army brass in June, had been a subject of concern for Biden and CIA Director William Burns, who jokingly mentioned the potential danger to Prigozhin. The mutiny was resolved through negotiations and a deal that saw Prigozhin relocate to Belarus, but he continued to move freely within Russia. Former senior CIA operations officer Daniel Hoffman believed that Wednesday’s incident was ordered by Putin to demonstrate his ruthlessness and deter potential betrayals. Pavel Luzin, an expert with a U.S. thinktank, saw the treatment of Prigozhin as evidence of divisions within the Russian elite and poor coordination within the Kremlin. The FBI had previously offered a reward for information leading to Prigozhin’s arrest for U.S. election interference. Prigozhin and his company were indicted in 2018 for funding a propaganda operation to influence the 2016 U.S. presidential election. The criminal case against Prigozhin’s company was dismissed in 2020 due to challenges in meeting the burden of proof. In November 2022, Prigozhin admitted to interfering in U.S. elections and expressed his intention to continue doing so.