Belarus Leader Lukashenko Says Prigozhin Back in Russia, Wagner Deployment Unclear

Founder of Wagner private mercenary group Yevgeny Prigozhin makes a statement on the start of withdrawal of his forces from Bakhmut and handing over their positions to regular Russian troops, in the course of Russia-Ukraine conflict in Bakhmut, Ukraine, on May 25, 2023. Press service of "Concord"/Handout via Reuters

MINSK—The mutinous head of Russia’s Wagner group is no longer in Belarus and it is not clear if his fighters will move there, Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko said on Thursday.

Mr. Lukashenko said on June 27 that Yevgeny Prigozhin had arrived in Belarus as part of the deal that defused the crisis, which had seen the Wagner fighters briefly capture the southern Russian city of Rostov-on-Don.