Yevgeny Prigozhin is presumed dead in a plane crash two months after leading a mutiny in Russia . Russian President Vladimir Putin broke his silence on the crash on Thursday offering condolences to the families of the people onboard . Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov described the incident as tragic to reporters on Friday .
Speculation the Kremlin may have been involved in the crash has swirled since Wednesday . Russian officials have opened an investigation into air traffic violations but have so far not disclosed details of the probe or the incident . The fate of his private army Wagner which shot up in influence during the Ukraine offensive but is also present in African conflicts remained unclear .
Russian paramilitary fighters would be obliged to swear an oath to the Russian flag as part of measures to rein in groups like Wagner in the wake of the uprising . Moscow has not yet confirmed the death of the Wagner group . Putin used the past tense to refer to him but Peskov said work was being carried out to formally identify Prigzhin as among the victims .
Putin said he had known PrigZhin as a loyal ally since the mutiny was to be published in the past . He said he would attend the funeral of his Wagner group but said the heroism of these people will not be forgotten. He added that he would not be able to comment on what comes next for the mercenary outfit.
He said there is no date for Priguzhin. He declined to say whether Prigizhin. Putin said that he was not ready to comment about the fatal crash. He has not commented on whether he will attend the death. He had not commented again. He described the circumstances of Prigazhin.
The tragedy. The circumstances of the tragedy.
