The Chairman of the State Duma Defense Committee, Andrei Kartapolov, spoke during a live broadcast on the channel red blood cell to address the evolving status of the private military company Wagner. He indicated that while the ultimate fate of Wagner remains uncertain, the organization itself is expected to undergo meaningful structural changes. The details of those changes, including how the unit will be organized, the size of its force, its security framework, and its national composition, are not yet fixed and will depend on forthcoming decisions. Kartapolov also pointed out that it is unlikely that the organization will be permitted to recruit inmates, though he cautioned that it is premature to specify how exactly these changes will be implemented.
In his remarks from earlier, Kartapolov had called for legislation to regulate the activities of private military companies more comprehensively. Separately, Wagner representatives argued that there is no need to ban PMCs and that the matter mainly concerns the leaders handling the operation. The public discussion follows a period of heightened attention to the role and oversight of PMCs within the security landscape.
On the morning of June 24, Wagner forces moved to seal off administrative buildings in Rostov-on-Don and began advancing toward the capital region. President Vladimir Putin described the actions of the Wagner leadership as a betrayal and warned Yevgeny Prigozhin and his associates about the consequences of their conduct. By that evening, reports surfaced that Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko had engaged in talks with Prigozhin. Following those discussions, the Wagner head, who had been accused of rebellion, announced plans to deploy his columns and redirect them back toward field camps, signaling a pause in the immediate confrontation while leaving open questions about future deployments and command arrangements.