Day 491 of the Invasion of Ukraine: Russia purges the Military after Prigozhin’s Rebellion

Day 491 of the invasion of Ukraine. Summary of key events in the last 24 hours:

• US: Surovikin not only knew, but also supported Prigozhin's "rebellion"
• Putin in Dagestan: I had no doubts that you would support me in Prigozhin's rebellion
• 12 are already the victims of the Russian strikes on Kramatorsk
• Poland says EU should fund border security amid concerns over Wagner PMC presence
• Zelensky expects the EU to lift restrictions on the import of Ukrainian agricultural products from September 15

US: Surovikin not only knew, but also supported Prigozhin's "rebellion"

Genерал Sergei Surovikin, the deputy commander of Russian military operations in Ukraine, was sympathetic to mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin's rebellion over the weekend, though it was unclear whether he actively supported it, US officials said yesterday, quoted by Reuters.

Prigozhin surprised the world by leading an armed rebellion on Saturday that saw fighters of his Wagner Group reach the Ukrainian border within 200km of Moscow before abruptly ending their march.

Three officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Surovikin supported Prigozhin, but Western intelligence did not know for sure whether he had helped the rebellion in any way.

At the beginning of the rebellion, Surovikin publicly called on the fighters of the private military company "Wagner" to give up their resistance to the military leadership and return to their bases.

On Tuesday, the New York Times reported that Surovikin knew in advance that Prigozhin was planning a rebellion.

Surovikin, dubbed "General Armageddon" by the...