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First troops are said to have already been deployed to Burkina Faso as Russia boosts its presence in Africa
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A timeline of global headlines that shaped the year
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Patrushev became alarmed over Prigozhin gaining outsized Kremlin influence via his Wagner forces’ Ukraine battlefield role
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Ukraine's leader also accuses Russian President Vladimir Putin of being behind the death of Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin in a plane crash last month
According to some media reports, the video was filmed in Mali
Moscow had announced earlier on Tuesday that President Vladimir Putin was not planning to attend the funeral of Prigozhin, whom he called a 'traitor' in June
Earlier on Friday, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov denied allegations that Moscow was behind the death of the mercenary chief
Announcement comes on the heels of the presumed death of the Wagner group boss, Yevgeny Prigozhin, who led a mutiny against the Russian strongman
Peskov says the 'tragic death of the passengers of the plane, including Yevgeny Prigozhin' was presented 'from a certain angle' in the West
With no official confirmation that Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigozhin died on board the plane, the U.S. Pentagon did state it was not a missile attack
Several Telegram channels reported that the jet was shot down by air defense system
The Russian state has also 'acted against some other business interests of Wagner owner Yevgeny Prigozhin'
The Economic Community of West African States is meeting later in the day over the situation in Niamey, with a range of sanctions in its arsenal
While Yevgeny Prigozhin does not claim involvement in the coup, he describes it as a long overdue moment of liberation from Western colonialism
Wagner is openly active in at least four countries in Africa, typically shoring up fragile regimes in exchange for minerals and other natural wealth
'There is a group, but legally it doesn't exist,' the Russian leader says
The meeting was initiated by Putin and was attended by 35 people, including all Wagner commanders
President Lukashenko said 'as far as Prigozhin is concerned, he is in Saint Petersburg. He is not in Belarus'
Prigozhin added that he was confident that in the near future everyone would see 'our next victories at the front'
The trip took place before the 24-hour insurrection by the leader of the Wagner mercenary group, Yevgeny Prigozhin
Following Wagner’s short-lived mutiny against Moscow last week, the Kremlin gave the mercenary forces a choice of going into exile in Belarus
Belarussian president confirms Wagner chief's arrival in his country, while Russian leader Vladimir Putin continues to speak about the weekend mutiny
Russia also said it was preparing to take over military hardware belonging to the Wagner group
In Moscow, the president blames 'neo-Nazis in Kyiv and their Western patrons' for wanting 'Russian soldiers to kill each other'