Russia drops all charges against mercenary Wagner Group after insurrection

R TOWARDS TRUMP. >> ALL RIGHT, DANIEL STRAUSS, ALWAYS NICE TO CHAT WITH YOU SO EARLY IN THE MORNING. THANK YOU. >> THANKS. >> OKAY, THIS JUST IN, RUSSIAN OFFICIALS SAY THEY ARE DROPPING THE INSURRECTION CHARGES AGAINST THE WAGNER GROUP FOR ARMED INSURRECTION. OFFICIALS SAY THAT WAGNER'S WEAPONS LAW WILL BE HANDED OVER. THIS COMES AS BELARUSIAN PRESIDENT ALEXANDER LUKASHENKO SPEAKS OUT THIS MORNING SAYING HE WAS QUOTE,

PAINFUL TO WATCH THE ARMED REBELLION INSIDE OF RUSSIA. LUKASHENKO ALLOWED WAGNER ME TO GIVE GHANI PRIGOZHIN TO GO TO BELARUS AFTER THAT CHAOTIC INSURRECTION, BOTH PRIGOZHIN AND RUSSIAN PRESIDENT VLADIMIR PUTIN ARE NOW BREAKING THEIR SILENCE. [SPEAKING NON-ENGLISH] >> TRANSLATOR: AN ARMED REBELLION WOULD HAVE BEEN SUPPRESSED IN ANY CASE. THE ORGANIZERS OF THE REBELLION COULD NOT FAIL TO UNDERSTAND THIS. THEY UNDERSTOOD EVERYTHING, INCLUDING THAT THEY RESORTED

TO CRIMINAL ACTS TO DIVIDE AND WEAKEN THE COUNTRY, WHICH IS NOW CONFRONTING A COLOSSAL EXTERNAL THREAT, UNPRECEDENTED PRESSURE FROM OUTSIDE. >> TRANSLATOR: TWO FACTORS PLAYED INTO MY DECISION TO TURN AROUND. FIRST FACTOR, WE WANTED TO AVOID A RUSSIAN BLOODSHED. THE SECOND IS THAT WE MARCHED IN DEMONSTRATION OF A PROTEST, NOT TO OVERTURN THE POWER IN THE COUNTRY. >> WE ARE ALSO LEARNING U.S. INTELLIGENCE OFFICIALS HAD

INFORMATION ABOUT THE REVOLT BEFORE IT HAPPENED, WHICH THEY KEPT SECRET FROM MOST ALLIES. SOURCES TELL CNN U.S. OFFICIALS WERE ABLE TO GATHER AN EXTREMELY DETAILED AND ACCURATE PICTURE OF PRIGOZHIN'S PLANS. CNN'S CLARE SEBASTIAN LIVE IN LONDON WITH MORE. CLARE, WHAT ARE WE LEARNING THIS MORNING ABOUT THE CHARGES BEING DROPPED, NEW DEVELOPMENTS ABOUT WAGNER'S WEAPONS BE RETURNED? >> SO THIS APPEARS ON THE CHARGES, CHRISTINE, TO BE

THE FSB, THE FEDERAL SECURITY SERVICE MAKING IT OFFICIAL AT THE KREMLIN SPOKESPERSON SAID ON SATURDAY NIGHT, WHICH WAS THAT THOSE INVOLVED IN THE MARCH OF WAGNER FIGHTERS WOULD NOT FACE CRIMINAL LIABILITY, THE REASON WHY I NOT LIGHT STATEMENT FROM THE FSB SEEMS TO BE THAT, THEY ARE DROPPING THE CHARGES BECAUSE THEY STOPPED THEIR MARCH, THEY DID NOT ACTUALLY CARRY ON, THEY ABORTED BEFORE THEY GOT TO

MOSCOW. THAT IS THE JUSTIFICATION THERE, THEY DON'T MENTION YEVGENY PRIGOZHIN BIDEN, THIS LOOK AT SOME CONFUSION ABOUT WHETHER THE CHARGES AGAINST HIM FOR ORGANIZING THE REBELLION STILL STAND, OR WILL AS THE KREMLIN SPOKESPERSON SUGGESTED ON SUNDAY NIGHT, BE DROPPED. SIGNIFICANT THOUGH, WE ALSO GET NEWS VIA STATE MEDIA FROM THE MINISTRY OF DEFENSE, THAT WAGNER IS PREPARING THEY SAY, TO HAND OVER THEIR WEAPONRY TO THE MINISTRY

OF DEFENSE. THIS IS SOMETHING THAT PRIGOZHIN AND HIS AUDIO SAGE SAID THAT THEY HAVE BEEN PLANNING TO DO, BY JUNE 30TH, BEFORE THAT ALLEGES STRIKE, HE ACCUSES RUSSIA OF DOING ON THE WAGNER CAMP, WHICH HE SAYS WAS THE TRIGGER FOR HIS SO-CALLED MARCH FOR JUSTICE IN RUSSIA. SO THIS APPEARS TO BE WAGNER REVERTING TO THAT PLAN TO ACTUALLY HAND OVER THOSE WEAPONS. SIGNIFICANT, BECAUSE IT DOES

SMACK OF SOME KIND OF DISSOLUTION OF THE GROUP ITSELF, EVEN THOUGH PRIGOZHIN IN THAT SAME AUDIO ADDRESS SAID THAT HE TALKED ABOUT HOW THE PRESIDENT DELIVERS, LUKASHENKO HAVE OFFERED A WAY FOR WAGNER TO CONTINUE ITS WORK IN A LEGAL JURISDICTION. THIS IS A CRUCIAL QUESTION GOING FORWARD, WHY WOULDN'T THAT BE THE STATUS OF THE WAGNER GROUP? TH>> CLARE, WHAT A TENSE LEADER OF BELARUS, LUKASHENKO BEEN

SAYING THIS MORNING? >> SO HE SAID, CHRISTINE, HE IS PUTTING HIS ARMY ON FULL READINESS IN LIGHT OF EVENTS IN RUSSIA. WE GOT A LOT OF EXPRESSIONS OF SUPPORT, UNITY AND INEXTRICABLE TIES WITH RUSSIA, WE KNOW THAT RELATIONSHIP ALTHOUGH ENTIRELY UNABLE, MUELLER IS ESSENTIALLY FUNCTIONS AS A SORT OF SUBSIDIARY OF RUSSIA, THEY ARE EXTREMELY CLOSE AND I'VE GROWN CLOSER SINCE THE INVASION OF UKRAINE. HE SAID

IT WAS PAINFUL TO WATCH, THE EVENTS WHICH TOOK PLACE IN THE SOUTH OF RUSSIA. AND HE SAYS IN NO CASE SHOULD YOU MAKE A HERO OUT OF ME FOR HIS ROLE IN THAT, OR PUTIN, OR OF PRIGOZHIN IN FACT BECAUSE HE SAYS, THEY MISSED THE SITUATION AND THOUGHT IT WOULD RESOLVE. BUT AN INTERESTING ADMISSION NOW, OF HOW THINGS SPIRALED BEYOND PERHAPS WHAT THEY WERE EXPECTING. ONE

THING THAT HE DID NOT SEE, A CRUCIAL ELEPHANT IN THE ROOM, THE WHEREABOUTS OF PRIGOZHIN HIMSELF, HE'S BEEN TOLD THAT HE COULD NOW RELOCATE TO BELARUS, WE ARE STILL WATCHING AND WAITING TO SEE IF THAT HAPPENS. >> ALL RIGHT, CLARE SEBASTIAN, I KNOW A LOT OF RAPID DEVELOPMENTS OVER THE WEEKEND. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR FOLLOWING ALL OF IT WITH YOUR EXPERTISE. SO MUCH TO BREAK

DOWN FROM THE AFTERMATH OF THIS SHORT-LIVED RUSSIAN INSURRECTION, PROTEST? LET'S BRING IN CNN MILITARY ANALYST, FORMER MEMBER OF THE JOINT STAFF AT THE PENTAGON, RETIRED COLONEL CEDRIC LEIGHTON. SO NICE TO SEE YOU THIS MORNING. WHAT DO YOU MAKE OF THE NEWS THAT THE RUSSIAN OFFICIALS SAY THEY ARE DROPPING INSURRECTION CHARGES AGAINST THE WAGNER GROUP, AND THAT HEAVY MILITARY EQUIPMENT WILL BE HANDED OVER TO THE RUSSIAN

MILITARY? >> YES, GOOD MORNING, CHRISTINE. I WOULD SAY THAT MEANS PUTIN HAS WON, AT LEAST THIS ROUND OF THE BATTLE BETWEEN THE WAGNER GROUP, SLASH PRIGOZHIN, AND PUTIN. IT SEEMS AS IF WHAT THE RUSSIAN ADMINISTRATION OF PUTIN'S FOLKS ARE DOING, IS TAKING CONTROL OF THE WAGNER GROUP, REALLY INTERESTING TO SEE HOW THIS UNFOLDS ON THE BATTLE TOWARDS UKRAINE, AS WELL AS IN WAGNER'S FAR FLUNG EMPIRE,

IF YOU WILL IN AFRICA AND IN SYRIA, PLACES LIKE THAT. >> YOU SAY PUTIN WON, BUT IS THE WEEKEND BY THIS EPISODE, AND BY HOW MUCH? >> YES. HE IS DEFINITELY WEEKEND BY THIS, CHRISTINE. THE REASON WHY HE IS WEEKEND IS BECAUSE OF THE VERY FACT THAT THIS REBELLION WAS EVEN MOUNTED AND PRIGOZHIN GOT AS FAR AS 125 MILES FROM MOSCOW. THAT IS A SIGNIFICANT DEAL,

A SIGNIFICANT CHALLENGE TO PUTIN'S LEADERSHIP. AND IT MEANS THAT ALTHOUGH WEAKENED, PUTIN WILL LASH OUT AS MUCH AS YOU CAN AGAINST THE ELEMENTS OF WAGNER OR ANYONE ELSE WHO TRIES TO MOUNT SOME KIND OF REBELLION LIKE THIS. THIS IS SOMETHING WHICH HAS HAPPENED A LOT OF IN RUSSIAN HISTORY IN THE PAST, WHERE A GROUP WILL DEMONSTRATE THE DISSATISFACTION. THEY WILL BE SUBSUMED TEMPORARILY BY THE STATE,

OR WHATEVER ORGANIZATION RUNS THE TERRITORY AT THAT POINT IN TIME. AND THEN, THE DISSATISFACTION WILL FIND ANOTHER EXPRESSION, AND RESULT IN SOMETHING ELSE, SOMETHING MORE SERIOUS THAN WHAT WE HAVE SEEN SO FAR. >> SO INTERESTING TO SEE WHAT HAPPENS TO THE WAGNER GROUP. IT IS A MAJOR PLAYER IN THE AFRICAN CONTINENT, SYRIA AND A LOT OF PLACES, DOING THE BIDDING OF THE KREMLIN. SOMETIMES UNOFFICIALLY, IN

SUCH A BIG WAY. IT WILL BE INTERESTING TO SEE HOW THAT ALL PLAYS OUT. WE HAVE NOW HEARD FROM THE MAJOR PLAYERS IN LAST WEEK'S RUSSIAN INSURRECTION, THE PRESIDENT OF BELARUS LUKASHENKO, OF PUTIN, THE WAGNER YEVGENY PRIGOZHIN, WHAT DO YOU MAKE OF PUTIN IN PARTICULAR, HIS TONE AND MESSAGING IN THE STATEMENT, ARMED REBELLION WOULD HAVE BEEN SUPPRESSED ANYWAYS? >> YES. I THINK HE IS LOOKING AT

THIS FROM A HISTORICAL STANDPOINT, AND ALSO FROM THE VERY POWERFUL STANDPOINT, A POWERFUL POSITION THAT HE HOLDS, HE KEPT THE OLIGARCHS IN LINE, THE MILITARY IN LINE. HE KEPT THE INTELLIGENCE SERVICES IN LINE. HE WOULD LOSE THREE ELEMENTS OF POWER, WITH THOSE THREE ELEMENTS OF POWER HE MAINTAIN CONTROL, HE KNEW HE HAD THAT CONTROL. PRIGOZHIN ALSO KNEW HE HAD THAT CONTROL, I THINK THAT IS THE