The leader of the Wagner Group mercenaries appears to have made his first public appearance since his mutiny against Vladimir Putin's regime in Russia last month.
That is, despite rumours he was either in prison or dead following a meeting with the Russian President about the uprising.
A video emerged on Telegram today (Wednesday, July 19) showing a man resembling Yevgeny Prigozhin. It was purportedly shot in Belarus, with Prigozhin seen addressing his fighters. One man is heard addressing him by name.
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Interestingly, it doesn't appear as if the mutiny and subsequent deal with the Russian government did much to quell his anger at their handling of the war in Ukraine.
"Welcome to the Belarusian land! We fought with dignity! We have done a lot for Russia," he said.
"What is happening at the front now is a disgrace in which we do not need to take part. We must wait for the moment when we can show our worth to the maximum. That’s why it was decided that we will be here in Belarus for some time."
He went on to say he aims to make the Belarusian army the "second greatest in the world", and vowed to defend them "if it comes to it".
"I want to ask everyone to pay maximum attention to the fact that the Belarusians met us not only as heroes but also as brothers," he added, before joking about the reaction of local girls to their arrival.
Prigozhin also suggested the Wagner mercenaries will soon make a return to Africa, where they have fought covertly in the past on Putin's behalf.
He said: "We should prepare, get better and set off on a new journey to Africa.
"Maybe we will return back [to Ukraine] when we will be confident that we will not be asked to make an embarrassment of ourselves and our experience."
The video is yet to be completely verified.
Prigozhin's men marched towards Moscow last month, targeting their anger at Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu and General Valery Gerasimov, head of the Russian armed forces, over the handling of the war in Ukraine.
Prigozhin eventually ordered his men to turn around before they reached the capital, saying afterwards he wanted to avoid bloodshed.
Putin's men were readied on the outskirts of Moscow while the president fled.
The dramatic U-turn is thought to have come after a deal was struck between Prigozhin and the Russian government. That deal was brokered by Belarusian dictator Alexander Lukashenko.
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