Wagner Group rebellion

On 23 June 2023, the Wagner Group, a Russian government-funded paramilitary and private military company, staged a rebellion after a period of increasing tensions between the Russian Ministry of Defence and the then-leader of Wagner, Yevgeny Prigozhin. An agreement to settle this conflict was reached between the two sides the next day, 24 June 2023.

While Prigozhin was supportive of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, he had publicly criticized Minister of Defence Sergei Shoigu and Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov, blaming them for the country's military shortcomings and accusing them of handing over "Russian territories" to Ukraine. Prigozhin portrayed the rebellion as a response to an alleged attack on his forces by the ministry, characterized it as a "march of justice", and demanded that Shoigu and Gerasimov be turned over to him. The day of the rebellion, Prigozhin said the justifications for the invasion were lies. In a televised address on 24 June, President of Russia Vladimir Putin denounced Wagner's actions as treason and pledged to quell the rebellion.

Prigozhin's forces took control of Rostov-on-Don and the headquarters of the Southern Military District in the city. An armored column of Wagner troops advanced through Voronezh Oblast towards Moscow. Armed with mobile anti-aircraft systems, the rebels repelled the air attacks of the Russian military, whose actions did not deter the progress of the column. Ground defenses were concentrated on the approach to Moscow. Before Wagner reached the defenses, President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko brokered a settlement with Prigozhin, who agreed to end the rebellion. On the late evening of 24 June, Wagner forces turned around, and those that had remained in Rostov-on-Don began withdrawing.

As per the agreement, the Federal Security Service, which had initiated a case for armed rebellion under Article 279 of the Criminal Code closed the case on 27 June 2023, dropping the charges. At least thirteen servicemen of the Russian military were killed during the rebellion. On the rebels' side, several Wagner members were reported injured and two military defectors were killed according to Prigozhin. Exactly two months after the rebellion, Prigozhin was killed in a plane crash along with other senior Wagner leaders.