Putin “weakened” so Ukraine needs more assistance as soon as possible - Metsola

European Parliament President Roberta Metsola believes the recent mutiny attempt by the leader of Wagner Group, Yevgeny Prigozhin, has weakened Russian President Vladimir Putin, which emboldens the EU to provide more assistance to Ukraine.

Answering a journalist’s question of how the EU perception of Russia might have changed after the mutiny attempt, Roberta Metsola said: “First, Putin is weakened, that the stability that we would have thought was there is not there in terms of the distance traveled (by the rebel Wagner troops – ed.), in terms of who knew it was going to happen, in terms of the move to resort to Lukashenko.”

The European Union came out of these developments “emboldened” that Ukraine needs more assistance as soon as possible. 

Asked whether the EU considers recognizing Wagner Group as a terrorist organization, the EP President said she is waiting for the relevant proposal to be put forward for discussion.

She added that at the meeting with the speaker of the Lithuanian parliament in Brussels on Thursday, she saw a declaration signed by the three Baltic parliaments doing the said move.

“At the moment, the proposal is not on the table in the parliament but I would say that the discussion is there,” she concluded.

As reported, the Head of the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine Kyrylo Budanov stated earlier that among the consequences of "Wagner's mutiny" for Ukraine are the compromise of the Russian leadership and the fact that Yevhen Prygozhyn's subordinates will no longer fight against Ukraine.

Photo: Office of the President