Western Media Spreading Disinformation About Alleged Prigozhin’s Death

By Lucas Leiroz de Almeida
Global Research, August 25, 2023
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The recent plane crash that occurred in Tver region was reason enough for western media outlets to launch a huge wave of disinformation, sharing unsubstantiated narratives and rumors. The aim is to gain attention from Western public opinion and to portray Russia’s image negatively, thus “justifying” the war policy against Moscow.

The tragedy happened on August 23, when an Embraer 135BJ Legacy 600 jet traveling from Moscow to St. Petersburg crashed in Tver. There is still no precise information about what motivated the accident, with suspicions of both an attack in the air and sabotage with planted bombs. More details are expected in the coming days as the investigation progresses.

According to data from the Russian Ministry of Emergencies and the Rosaviatsiya agency, Evgeny Prigozhin and Dmitri Utkin, co-founders and leaders of the Wagner Group, were among the ten passengers on the aircraft, as well as other high-ranking PMC commanders. There were no survivors in the accident, which is why Prigozhin and Utkin are presumed dead. However, no official confirmation of death has been given so far, as the bodies of the passengers have not yet been identified.

In addition, there is a second plane connected to the Wagner involved in the news. On the same day of the event, an RA-02878 jet departed from Moscow shortly after the Embraer Legacy, having returned to land after the pilot was notified of the accident with the other jet. There is no confirmation about the names of the passengers on this aircraft so far, with only speculation, unofficial reports and rumors about who could be on board.

Obviously, when situations like this occur, authorities act with extreme caution and only confirm data after thorough investigation, given the sensitive nature of the topic. Even more prudence is expected from the authorities of a country in conflict, as is the case in today’s Russia. However, the same attitude is not seen in the western media. Without any commitment to truth and information, pro-NATO media outlets spread all kinds of anti-Russian rumors, only with the intention of defaming the country and its leaders.

The narrative adopted by the newspapers was that the plane would have suffered an attack by the Russian defense forces in an act of personal revenge by President Vladimir Putin against the head of the Wagner Group. This would have been a response to the mutiny led by Prigozhin on June 24, when Wagner troops began a “march” from Rostov to Moscow, aborting the operation after reaching an agreement mediated by Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko.

CNN, for example, wrote that “Prigozhin would be latest in line of Putin critics who met an early death”. In an article published on August 24, CNN journalists said that Prigozhin “appears to have joined an ever-growing list of high-profile Russians who have fallen from the president’s good graces and died in mysterious circumstances”.

Something similar was published by the BBC on the same day. Journalists accused Moscow of having destroyed the Wagner plane to provide a belated response to the June 24 mutiny. According to Western reporters, Vladimir Putin was discredited for not punishing Prigozhin, so he has now operated an attack to strengthen his image again.

“When Yevgeny Prigozhin and his Wagner troops launched their insurrection two months ago, Vladimir Putin made his feelings more than clear (…) He promised that the perpetrators would be punished. So there was incredulity in Russia when they were not (…) It made President Putin look weak (…) Suddenly things look rather different”, the article reads.

In the same vein, several journalists published on social networks a video of an interview with President Vladimir Putin, in which he states that it is not possible to “forgive” a “betrayal”. The video dates back to 2018, but was spread out of context to try to relate it to Prigozhin’s death.

Indeed, this wave of disinformation favors the Western plan to portray Russia as a dictatorial country, ruled by a “murderer” who acts selfishly against personal enemies. With this work of disinformation, the western media hopes to generate anti-Russian antipathy in public opinion, fomenting popular support for the war that NATO is waging against Moscow.

However, if analyzed in depth, all these narratives are easily refuted. The June 24th riot ended peacefully, without any remaining friction between Wagner and state forces. Days after the mutiny, Putin and Prigozhin met in person in Moscow, making it clear that the deal brokered by Lukashenko indeed ended any conflict of interest, with Wagner remaining a force loyal for the Russian state.

Furthermore, even if one supposes that eventually the Russian government would have an interest in eliminating Wagner’s members, certainly this type of clandestine operation would be done in a more professional way. Intelligence agents are expected to operate purges cautiously and without leaving a trace. Shooting down a plane inside Russian airspace and generating fear in the population is obviously not a tactic consistent with these requirements.

There is no convincing evidence to speak of Russian government involvement in the case. Most likely, the plane was sabotaged or attacked by Ukrainian, Western agents or bribed Russian dissidents. More information about the case will certainly be released by the authorities in the near future. The only thing that is clear for now is that the mainstream media is not a reliable source for understanding what happens in Russia.

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Lucas Leiroz is a journalist, researcher at the Center for Geostrategic Studies, geopolitical consultant. You can follow Lucas on Twitter and Telegram.

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