FLASH
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The President of Belarus, Alexander Lukashenko, has confirmed that the head of the Wagner paramilitary group, Yevgeny Prigozhin, has arrived in the country.
He said he offered the mercenary group an abandoned military site where they could "set up their tents thinking about what to do next".
Lukashenko is said to have brokered a deal that narrowly prevented Wagner's mercenaries from marching on Moscow after the private army rebelled against Russia's military leaders.
Lukashenko said there would be no Wagner recruitment outlets in Belarus, but the country's citizens could join the group, and issued an ominous warning that those making such a decision must understand the "risk of death" for the job.
Commenting on the reasons that led to the uprising, the Belarusian leader said it was an "interpersonal conflict" between Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and Prigozhin "that escalated into this war."
"I know Shoigu's work. In an undeserved way, it is sometimes criticized," he said.
Lukashenko asked that he not be called a "mediator", arguing that he was "a participant" because it was a common problem for Russia and Belarus.
He also said that lessons should be learned from the situation with the rebellion.
"We should be more attentive to such military collectives if we have created them. And we must respond to their requests in a timely manner."
Putin's supporters have insisted that his rule was not weakened by the revolt.
Asked whether Putin's power was diminished by the sight of Wagner's rebel mercenaries seizing a military headquarters, advancing on Moscow and shooting down military planes along the way, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov accused political commentators of exaggeration.
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