According to The Wall Street Journal, the death of PMC Wagner founder Yevgeny Prigozhin in the crash was the result of a murder. The publication refers to representatives of Western intelligence services and a former Russian intelligence officer. They said Patrushev warned Putin about Prigozhin’s growing influence since the summer of 2022, but President Purin ignored warnings.
The situation changed in October 2022 after Prigozhin complained of a lack of rough ammunition. According to sources, Patrushev used this moment to convince Putin to distance himself from Prigozhin, considering him dangerous and disrespecting the authority of the Kremlin. By December 2022, as the WSJ notes, Patrushev’s influence had won, and Putin began to ignore Prigozhin’s statements and calls.
On June 23, 2023, Prigozhin started his “revolt”, which served as an excuse for Patrushev to “take over the power in his own hands”. The Secretary of the Security Council of the Russian Federation took decisive steps, organizing a flurry of telephone calls, including to officers supporting Prigozhin, calling for an end to the rebellion. Patrushev also appealed to Alexander Lukashenka and President of Kazakhstan Tokayev in search of mediators to resolve the conflict.
According to the newspaper, the call to Tokayev was considered insurance in the worst-case scenario. If the Russian army failed to deter Prigozhin’s mercenaries, Kazakhstan could send its armed forces in response to the introduction of CSTO forces in January 2022. However, Tokayev refused.
A former Russian intelligence officer claims that in early August Patrushev gave the order to start the operation «to eliminate Prigozhin». Western intelligence agencies claim that these plans were shown to Putin, and he did not object.
On August 23, Prigozhin’s plane crashed in the Tver region after departing from Moscow. Western sources say that a small bomb was placed under the wing of the plane. All 10 people on board, including Prigozhin and the PMC commander Dmitry “Wagner” Utkin, were killed. Official confirmation of Prigozhin’s death from the Russian Royal Commission appeared on August 27.
Who is Nikolai Patrushev?
For a quarter of a century, Nikolai Patrushev was at the top of the Russian state. His family is the only one with representatives in the Russian Security Council and the government. The state is doing its best to protect Nikolai Patrushev and his son, the Minister of Agriculture Dmitry Patrushev. Their names have even been removed from State databases, highlighting their special status.
According to The New York Times journalists, in November 2021, Patrushev insisted on the possibility of an invasion of Ukraine and a victory for Russia. He said, “We can do it [attack and win]. We have returned”. These words, according to journalists, were pronounced by Patrushev during a meeting with the CIA Director. Political scientist Mikhail Komin notes that Nikolai Patrushev senior has long shared with Putin views on key issues. Komin stresses that Patrushev is considered one of the most radical and conservative members of the Russian Security Council.
The activities of Nikolai Patrushev rarely fall into public focus. According to former Kremlin officials, he arrives daily on the Russian automobile Aurus to his office in the presidential administration, and his telephone communication is always encrypted.
One of the rare public appearances occurred in 2016 when Patrushev went to «restore order» after a failed operation in Montenegro. Russia’s military intelligence tried to incite unrest to prevent the country from joining NATO.
Most of his work remains in the shadows. In 2020, his plane was fixed in Oman when President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy was there. This led to accusations of a secret meeting, which both parties deny. Before the outbreak of the conflict in Ukraine, his plane was also spotted in Jakarta, where US Secretary of State Antony Blinken was at the time. Neither the United States nor Moscow confirmed the meeting.
Signs of a rapprochement between Moscow and Beijing prompted US attempts to persuade the Kremlin to abandon its alliance with China. White House specialist Matthew Pottinger presented historical maps of China's claim to Russian territory. Patrushev responded with a mockery: “We know who our enemies are,” according to an American official present at the meeting. On the whole, Patrushev’s attitude towards the US is quite negative, he sees Russia drawn out against the US, which, in his opinion, is seeking to «steal» Russian oil and minerals. In his speeches and interviews, he spared no conspiracy theories. His involvement in some dark episodes during Putin’s presidency underscores the risks for those who fall into the Kremlin’s spotlight, often with deadly consequences.
