Daily life in Moscow following Wagner group's retreat from Russia, Russian Federation - 25 Jun 2023
People take pictures near the blocked Red Square in Moscow, Russia, 25 June 2023. Moscow's Red Square remained closed on the day after security in the city was tightened. On 24 June, counter-terrorism measures were enforced in Moscow and other Russian regions after private military company (PMC) Wagner Group's chief claimed that his troops had occupied the building of the headquarters of the Southern Military District in Rostov-on-Don, demanding a meeting with Russia's defense chiefs. Belarusian President Lukashenko, a close ally of Putin, negotiated a deal with Wagner chief Prigozhin to stop the movement of the group's fighters across Russia, the press service of the President of Belarus reported. The negotiations were said to have lasted for the entire day. Prigozhin announced that Wagner fighters were turning their columns around and going back in the other direction, returning to their field camps.