Intelligence officials were conducting detailed briefings at the White House, the Pentagon, and on Capitol Hill about the potential for unrest in Russia a full 24-hours before Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigozhin launched the ultimately failed march on Moscow, two newspaper outlets have claimed.
The Washington Post and New York Times were the two sources of the same claim, built on the fear a major nuclear-armed rival of the United States could descend into chaos.
U.S. spy agencies picked up intelligence in mid-June indicating Wagner mercenary chief Yevgeniy Prigozhin was planning armed action against the Russian defense establishment — which he has long accused of bungling the war in Ukraine — and urgently informed the White House and other government agencies so they were not caught off guard, several U.S. officials said Saturday.
The exact nature and timing of Prigozhin’s plans were not clear until shortly before his stunning takeover of a military command and tank run toward Moscow on Friday and Saturday, officials said. But “there were enough signals to be able to tell the leadership … that something was up,” said one U.S. official, who like others spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the matter’s sensitivity. “So I think they were ready for it.”
Wagner Forces Reach Area Just South of Moscow, According to Local Governorhttps://t.co/YhuImhE2p4
— Breitbart London (@BreitbartLondon) June 24, 2023
Meanwhile the Times alleged the assertion of prior knowledge in Washington, DC, was both solid and alarming by mid-week, leading to the flurry of briefings at the very highest level of the Biden administration.
As U.S. intelligence officials pinned down information that Prigozhin was preparing military action, the outlet reported they grew concerned about chaos in a country with a powerful nuclear arsenal.
#Trump promises to bring peace within 24hrs between #Russia & #Ukraine. Strange, the establishment machine loves the spoils of war, it’s almost like Trump is for #WeThePeople. 🤔🤔🤔☝️😲🤯. pic.twitter.com/54BNNCQizv
— Brandon Taylor Moore (@LetsGoBrando45) June 25, 2023
U.S. spy agencies believe Vladimir Putin was personally informed that Prigozhin, once a close ally, was plotting his rebellion at least a day before it occurred, the Post reported.
Steve Bannon & Sam Faddis: The Wagner Group Is Already Control Tactical Nuclear Weapons – 6/24/23#RussianCivilWar #RussiaCoup #WagnerGroup pic.twitter.com/7mD5njbR6U
— DOWNLOAD.NEWS – AlexJonesMinerV2 (@DOWNLOADdotNEWS) June 24, 2023
What’s behind Wagner’s #RussiaCoup ?
A quick 3 min explainer 👇 pic.twitter.com/Kq6Q63IUjH
— Oubai Shahbandar (@OS26) June 24, 2023
Coup 0 : 2848429 Russia pic.twitter.com/G5gZeMPvEn
— Margarita K. (@MargarittaaK) June 25, 2023
JUST IN: Senators Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) have introduced a resolution that calls for WAR with Russia if any Ukrainian nuclear plants are attacked by the Russian military.
Why are they pushing so hard for WW3?https://t.co/W8eAsYCz24
— Proud Elephant 🇺🇸🦅 (@ProudElephantUS) June 26, 2023
