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Wagner Group Mercenaries Rattle Moscow with a Short-Lived Rebellion; Blinken Comments It's Too Soon to Know How the Crisis in Russia Will Unfold; Kremlin and the Office of the Belarusian President Credit Lukashenko with Brokering Deal with Prigozhin; Russia Shores Up Support from China; Moscow Mayor Announces the Lifting of All Security Restrictions in the Capital; Greece Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis Wins a Second Four-Year term, defeating his main rival by a huge margin. Aired 3-4a ET

Aired June 26, 2023 - 03:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

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ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR: Hello and welcome to our viewers joining us here in the United States and all around the world. You are watching CNN Newsroom and I'm Rosemary Church. Just ahead, new video released by Russia is raising more questions than it answers what it purports to show and what we do know following the brief insurrection. Plus, we are finally hearing from China on the tumultuous events of the weekend. We'll go to Hong Kong for a live report. And from this twister in the Midwest to extreme heat in the South, we are following severe weather across much of the United States.

UNKNOWN (voice-over): Live from CNN Center, this is CNN Newsroom with Rosemary Church.

CHURCH: Good to have you with us. Well, a short-lived armed rebellion inside Russia has led to growing questions about Vladimir Putin's leadership and whether his grip on power is weakening. Moscow is quiet now, with the mayor saying all security restrictions have been lifted. This after the city was rattled over the weekend as Wagner Group mercenaries marched toward the capital.

The uprising coming to an abrupt end Saturday after a Minsk broker deal but since then, there's been no sign of Wagner Group head Yevgeny Prigozhin. His news service says he will answer questions when he has quote proper communication. But we are now seeing video of Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu. It was released by the Russian Defense Ministry which said Shoigu was visiting Russian troops at a frontline command post, but it's not known when this visit took place and CNN cannot independently verify the location of that video.

CNN's Clare Sebastian joins me now from London with the latest. Good to see you, Claire. So, as we said we just received this newly released video of the Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu. What more can you tell us about it? CLARE SEBASTIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: So, it's pretty vague, Rosemary,

there's actually no audio on the video, there's no date, as you say, given and no exact location. The account provided by the Ministry of Defense says he is visiting the frontline command post of the Western group of troops in the zone of the so-called special military operation. It's not particularly common for him to visit the frontline.

This is something that he's been criticized for, so perhaps, there's an element here in releasing these images now of sort of counterprogramming, a counterpoint to that criticism. And in fact, a counterpoint to Yevgeny Prigozhin himself who is known for appearing frequently on the frontlines in areas of intense battle like Bakhmut. Perhaps Shoigu trying to appear as in charge as a strong man, a tough guy like Prigozhin himself in response to the events over the weekend.

Having said that though, I don't think given that we don't know the date of this or the location that it will put paid to speculation around the whereabouts of Shoigu, around his job security, particularly, given events over the weekend. But these are the first images, even though we don't know when they actually were shot, that we've seen from him since this insurrection took place.

CHURCH: Certainly interesting timing in this. So, Clare, what more are you learning about this stalled insurrection and what it could mean for Vladimir Putin's leadership and, of course, for the Wagner boss, Yevgeny Prigozhin?

SEBASTIAN: So, I think, you know, obviously this ramps up the pressure on the war in Ukraine for Putin. He now has to prove that the miscalculation that has led to him having to fight this war for now more than 16 months and then to push back a rebellion on Russian soil, an armed rebellion, that all of that was somehow for some higher purpose. I think that's made more difficult perhaps, by the fact that Yevgeny Prigozhin who spearheaded this rebellion for whom Putin promised inevitable punishment on Saturday morning, then ended up without that punishment with simply an exile to Belarus.

Now, as for Prigozhin himself, we don't know if he's accepted this exile. The last we've heard from him, according to his press service, is that, you know, he sends his regards and he's going to get back in touch with the media once he has better communication. So, a little bit cryptic there. But in terms of Wagner, the group itself, that is a lot less clear.

The State Duma in Russia is said to be working on a law to regulate this. But when asked about this in an interview with the Russian newspaper on Sunday, the head of the Defense Committee for the Duma said they are not planning to disband the group.

[03:05:00]

Why would we do this? He said this would be the ultimate gift to NATO and the Ukrainians since he described Wagner as the most combat-ready part of the Russian Army. So, it seems for the moment, even though we don't know its future status that this group may live to see another day. Rosemary.

CHURCH: All right, Clare Sebastian, joining us live from London. Many thanks for that report. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken says it's too soon to know how the crisis in Russia will unfold, but he suspects this isn't the end of Moscow's troubles. Here's what he told CNN on Sunday.

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ANTONY BLINKEN, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: Sixteen months ago, Russian forces were on the doorstep of Kyiv, Ukraine, thinking they were going to take the city in a matter of days, erase the country from the map. Now, they had to be focused on defending Moscow, Russia's capital, against mercenaries of Putin's own making. So, this raises lots of profound questions that will be answered, I think, in the days and weeks ahead.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: Blinken went on to say the events of the past week are the first visible cracks in Russia's facade. CNN's Jeff Zeleny has more on how the U.S. is responding to the situation in Russia.

JEFF ZELENY, CHIEF U.S. NATIONAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: After spending the weekend talking to Western allies, President Biden returning to the White House on Sunday, not taking questions or commenting on the extraordinary turn of events in Russia over the weekend. He did speak with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, saying that the U.S. has unwavering support towards Ukraine and its people.

The President also spending much of the time over the weekend at Camp David talking to Western allies from Canada, from the U.K., from France, from Germany, making the case here that all countries really are watching and waiting to see the situation unfold in Russia.

Now, there is no doubt Russian President Vladimir Putin has had a reign for 23 years through four American presidents. But the Biden administration this week, President Biden faces a new challenge for President Biden. They are not trying to be publicly seen being involved in this in any way at all, do not want to be blamed or accused of trying to tip the scales. But there is no doubt a weaker Vladimir Putin raises concerns and worries here in the U.S. and indeed in other Western capitals about the potential danger for that.

So, President Biden not scheduled to speak about this as the week begins, but he will have an event on Monday morning here at the White House. This is certainly now a new foreign policy, a challenge and certainly a question here on the President's agenda as he begins a new week. Jeff Zeleny, CNN, The White House.

CHURCH: The Russian insurrection has given Ukrainians a push to fight back even harder against their Russian invaders. On Sunday, officials declared it was the first stage in dismantling Vladimir Putin's regime, saying, quote, the countdown has begun. It comes as Ukraine's military claims to be making critical gains around the city of Bakhmut. CNN's Ben Wedeman has more on the frontline battles in Ukraine.

BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: After the brief but intense drama in Russia, it's back to the war in Ukraine. While Wagner Chief Yevgeny Prigozhin was on the rampage against his foes in Moscow, officials in Kyiv were largely silent, following Napoleon's advice never to interrupt your enemy while he's making a mistake. Briefly, many Ukrainians entertained the hope that civil war or chaos in Russia would lead to an early end to the war, but Prigozhin's sudden about-face, dashed to those hopes.

Sunday, Ukrainian Presidential Adviser Mykhailo Podolyak said in an interview, he was hoping for something more concrete, perhaps a civil war in Russia. He said he was still confident, that will eventually happen. While attention was diverted away from the front, the fighting went on.

Sunday, Ukrainian officials claimed their forces had seized a kilometer stretch of trenches near Bakhmut. They said they killed, wounded or captured an entire battalion, though they didn't give exact numbers. It was a limited tactical success. The much-anticipated counteroffensive has yet to hit its stride. I'm Ben Wedeman, CNN, reporting from Zaporizhzhia.

CHURCH: And this just into CNN, Ukraine's Air Force says it intercepted 13 air targets overnight. That includes two cruise missiles and seven attack drones launched from the south.

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A military spokesperson says Ukraine's air defenses also destroyed four unspecified aerial vehicles that came in from the north.

Well, extreme weather was on full display Sunday just outside of Indianapolis. The National Weather Service says it's almost certainly a tornado. They will make it official after a survey team reports back Monday. Here's what it looked like for a fire company responding to reports of a collapsed building. Officials say at least 75 homes have been damaged. An apartment building under construction was also destroyed. There are no reports of serious injuries.

And in Texas, some major cities are expected to reach a feels like temperature of 125 degrees Fahrenheit, that is 51 degrees Celsius. CNN's Allison Chinchar has details now from the CNN Weather Center.

ALLISON CHINCHAR, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Roughly a dozen states are already under either heat advisories or excessive heat warnings. And in some instances, these are likely going to last for several days. That's because for some of these areas, they don't even peak temperature wise until Tuesday or even Wednesday of the upcoming week.

Take, for example, Houston going from 101 for the high on Monday up to 103 by Wednesday. Dallas going from 102 on Monday to 107 by the time we get to the middle portion of the upcoming week. And for many of these areas, even though they peak, they really don't drop back down by the end of the week. Take Austin, for example, the average high this time of year is 94. We are going to spend every single one of the next seven days with

those high temperatures getting into the triple digits. And we're looking at over 35 cities breaking record temperatures at some point this week between Monday and Friday. Some of those communities possibly even having two or three days in a row of record-breaking temperatures.

It's also not just the temperature we're concerned about, but also when you factor in that humidity, you get what we call the feels like temperature. And in some of these areas, you're talking extremely high numbers. Corpus Christi getting that feels like temperature all the way up to 110 on Tuesday. Dallas looking at a feels like temperature Tuesday of up to 114 degrees.

Really, the only areas that are likely not going to see much of this heat, especially in the eastern half of the country is gonna be places like the Midwest, the Northeast and the mid Atlantic. And the reason for that is you have a lot of these showers and thunderstorms that will be moving into the area. Because it's also the potential for some severe storms, especially for cities like New York, Washington, D.C., stretching down through Atlanta. The main threats there will be damaging winds and the potential for some large hail, as well.

CHURCH: And still to come here on CNN Newsroom, Beijing is emphasizing its closeness with Russia and Vladimir Putin, days after he faced one of the biggest challenges to his leadership in decades. We will tell you what they're saying. That is next, and we'll also bring you also the latest in a diplomatic standoff between Russia and Australia. And it involves one Russian diplomat apparently living in this portable building near Australia's Parliament House.

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CHURCH: Welcome back, everyone. Returning now to our top story this hour, the deal brokered to end the insurrection led by Wagner head Yevgeny Prigozhin. What little we know about this is leading to a lot of questions among them. Why is Prigozhin being allowed to seek a safe haven in Belarus?

Well, here's what we know. Both the Kremlin and the Office of the Belarusian President credit Mr. Lukashenko with brokering the deal. Kremlin Spokesperson Dmitry Peskov offers a more personal reason. He says that President Lukashenko and Prigozhin have, in fact, known each other for 20 years. But you could also call it a matter of returning a favor.

President Putin stood by his ally amid street protests following his re-election back in 2020. Critics say that vote was rigged. Opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya has been living in exile since that outcome and she tweeted this, now that the weakness and fragility of Putin's bandit regime has been exposed, it's high time for Europe to react. His puppet, Lukashenko, tries to turn Belarus into a criminal haven with nuclear weapons. I call on European leaders to act decisively in support of democratic Belarus.

And for more, we're joined now by Franak Viacorka. He is a Belarusian opposition politician and the Chief Advisor to Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya. Thank you so much for joining us.

FRANAK VIACORKA, CHIEF ADVISOR TO BELARUSIAN OPPOSITION LEADER TSIKHANOUSKAYA: Thank you for having me.

CHURCH: So, first, what do you make of this deal made by President Lukashenko to stop Yevgeny Prigozhin's armed rebellion by offering him this safe haven in Belarus?

VIACORKA: I think Lukashenko played the role of mediator, but also the messenger of Putin. The idea to offer the haven for Prigozhin in Belarus, it was Putin's idea. But Putin did not want to speak to Prigozhin directly. This is why he called his brother Lukashenko and said, Alexander, could you offer this to Prigozhin?

And for Prigozhin, it was the solution because he wanted to save the face. He realized that he perhaps doesn't have enough forces to take Moscow, and this was like a temporary pose in this revolution. But I don't think Prigozhin will stop on that. I think he will continue challenging Putin. We just see the end of the first season of Prigozhin saga, but it will continue very soon.

CHURCH: Of course, so, worth pointing out that no one seems to know where Yevgeny Prigozhin is right now or even Vladimir Putin for that matter. What do you think will likely happen to Prigozhin? Can he survive this?

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VIACORKA: Prigozhin is definitely a trait of Putin's revenge. Putin will never forgive Prigozhin. He will be chasing him, and he will be punishing him. Prigozhin is definitely a trait of Putin's revenge. Putin will never forgive Prigozhin. He will be chasing him, and he will be punishing him. Of course, if Putin kills Prigozhin right now, everyone will know that this is the Putin story. And people in Russia, they will not accept it because people support Prigozhin.

Prigozhin is super popular. So, right now for Putin, it's quite comfortable. If Prigozhin goes to Belarus, will take some time, will move Wagner mercenaries there, and then Putin will think what to do with Prigozhin next. The problem is that we don't know what to do with Prigozhin in Belarus, because we as Belarusians, 9 million people, we are becoming the hostages of this Russian internal conflict. And I think Lukashenko, neither understands what to do with Prigozhin.

CHURCH: Yeah, and you have called, and your opposition party has called on the United States, other Western nations, to act. What do you want them to do?

VIACORKA: Belarus is definitely overlooked in this crisis, and now its role becoming very, very important. If changes in Belarus will start, if Russian troops will leave Belarus, it will be huge hit on Putin, and it will be a big help to Ukraine, to Ukraine's victory. This is why we are calling for the West to elaborate the strategy on Belarus.

This strategy must include Russian troops must leave, dismantling of Lukashenko's regime, free and fair election, and protection of Belarus independence through sanctions, through the support for democratic forces. But we as Belarusians, we need right now attention of the world to change the status quo.

CHURCH: And just how damaged do you think is the leadership of Vladimir Putin? Do you think this is the beginning of the end for Russia's president, as a result of this insurrection challenging him?

VIACORKA: I think this is the end of the big tyranny, the end of Putin's era. Everyone in Russia saw that Putin is not almighty. He is fragile. He is vulnerable. It started the processes inside of the elites. After Prigozhin, there will be many others who will challenge Putin. It's also good for Belarus because Belarusian military, who are concentrated around Lukashenko right now, they saw that Putin in the critical moment will not defend them. So, there will be a window of opportunity for Belarusians, too, to uprise again, to split elites, and we should not miss this moment.

CHURCH: And what are people in Belarus saying that they will do if they spot Prigozhin? I think people will hate Prigozhin. People don't want Prigozhin in Belarus. Prigozhin is the criminal, war criminal. He doesn't see Belarus or Ukraine as independent countries. He doesn't see Belarusians as independent nations.

So, I think Belarusian army and Belarusian society will not accept him. Belarusians are very peaceful nation. They want peace, they want negotiations, they want trade, they want economical prosperity. And Prigozhin, he wants war, war, war, all the time, only war. So, I don't think it will be a comfortable heaven for him at all. And I don't think he will stay for a long time in Belarus. I hope so. And we should do all possible to get rid of him as soon as possible.

CHURCH: Belarusian opposition politician Franak Viacorka, thank you so much for joining us. Appreciate it. Well, after a weekend of turmoil, Russia is shoring up support from one of its closest allies. Russian Deputy Foreign Minister met with his Chinese counterpart on a trip to Beijing on Sunday. Russian officials say the two spoke about the political upheaval after Yevgeny Prigozhin's insurrection, with China affirming the need to strengthen Russia's unity and prosperity. And Anna Coren joins me now from Hong Kong with more on this. So, Anna, what else are you learning about the support that China is offering Russia in the wake of this aborted armed rebellion?

ANNA COREN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Rosemary, 24 hours basically after that abrupt end to the insurrection threatening Vladimir Putin's group of power, its greatest ally China broke its silence issuing support for the Kremlin. After closely watching the gravest challenge to Putin's 23-year rule unfold over the weekend, the Chinese Foreign Ministry issued a very strong statement online late Sunday evening, local time.

Let me read it to you, Rosemary. It said, this is Russia's internal affair. As Russia's friendly neighbor and comprehensive strategic partner of coordination for the new era, China supports Russia in maintaining national stability and achieving development and prosperity.

Now, as you say, it followed an unexpected visit by Russia's Deputy Foreign Minister Foreign Minister, Andrei Rudenko to Beijing, who met with China's Foreign Minister, Qin Gang, among other Chinese officials yesterday, where the two exchanged views on, quote, Sino-Russian relations and international regional issues of common concern.

[03:25:00]

That photo that you're looking at showed the pair smiling, you know, walking side by side, that real act of solidarity. Russia claims that this was part of scheduled consultations. Interestingly, however, the Chinese did not announce the meeting beforehand, Rosemary.

CHURCH: And China may be publicly showing solidarity with Russia, but privately, are there concerns here? Yeah, absolutely. I mean, we know that Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin have developed a very close personal rapport in recent years over their shared ambition to challenge the U.S.-led global order. Last year in February, the two leaders declared a friendship with no limits, shortly before Putin launched his war on Ukraine.

China has refused to condemn the invasion and has provided much needed diplomatic and economic support for Russia. And it's also portrayed itself at times as a peace broker between Russia and Ukraine. But, Rosemary, there are analysts who believe that China is closely monitoring, you know, the fallout of this aborted mutiny.

Political scientist Wen Ti-Sung at the Australian National University, he said that the Wagner insurrection contradicts the narrative of Putin as a strong leader who enjoys full support of his people and is here for the long haul as China's global partner of choice. If Putin's rule is unstable, then supporting him is bad business.

Now, on China's Twitter-like platform Weibo, the Wagner insurrection, Rosemary, was a top trending topic over the weekend. Back to you.

CHURCH: All right, I appreciate that report. Anna Coren, joining us live from Hong Kong. Well, a diplomatic standoff in Australia has ended. Russia has just lost its appeal to build a new embassy in Australia's capital not far from the country's parliament building. The Russian diplomat who had been squatting on the disputed embassy site in Canberra can be seen here leaving in this video.

Angus Watson joins me now live from Sydney. It's just extraordinary. So, Angus, what is the backstory to this and is this the end of the matter?

ANGUS WATSON, CNN PRODUCER: Well, Rosemary, Russia has wanted this diplomatic campus, a stone's throw from Australian Parliament since 2008. That's when they signed the lease. They promised to have construction done in under two years. But here we are in 2023 and it's still a construction site. The government wanted to move them along over the past couple of years. But now it was very worried about the national security implications of having a Russian diplomatic campus so close to Australian lawmakers as they do their work.

The Australian government was worried about the possibility of eavesdropping going on. So, it moved on the 15th of June to have Russia expelled. It passed new legislation at that Parliament House to be able to move Russia on. Russia responded badly. They called Australia Russiaphobic, and they took that case to the High Court.

But most strangely, as you mentioned, since the 15th of June, it appears one staff member there, the Russian Embassy has squatted on the site -- on this construction site. He's been seen leaving a small building on the site to smoke cigarettes and pick up takeaway food orders, and it was only today that he left after that high court challenge that Russia brought was waved away by the judge, who said it was -- that Russia really didn't have a leg to stand when they were challenging Australia's constitution.

The Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said that Russia really has a poor record at the moment of standing up for the law. That's the opposite of what he says Australia does. So, this bizarre saga really underscores the damaged relations between Australia and Russia, much like the relations between Russia and Western countries are so damaged by their illegal invasion of Ukraine.

We had today, Australia pledging more support for Ukraine, more training for Ukrainian troops, more ammunition for its soldiers and more armoured personnel vehicles to be sent from Australia to Ukraine to join that war effort. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will be going to Lithuania for the NATO summit next month, in which more support is set to be pledged, Rosemary.

CHURCH: All right, Angus Watson, with that remarkable story, many thanks, appreciate it. Still to come, a whirlwind chain of events rattles Moscow and President Vladimir Putin. A closer look inside the armed rebellion, inside Russia. That's next.

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ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR: Back to our top story this hour, the mayor of Moscow announced on Monday that all security restrictions in the Russian capital have been lifted. Now, this comes after an insurrection presented the biggest challenge to Russian President Vladimir Putin's grip on the country. Meanwhile, the whereabouts of Wagner Chief Yevgeny Prigozhin who led that revolt are unknown at this hour, but he is expected to go to Belarus under the terms of a deal that ended the insurrection.

The military revolt lasted less than 24 hours, but long enough to bring into question Vladimir Putin's aura of invincibility and stability. CNN's Senior International Correspondent, Ivan Watson, reports on how those crucial hours played out from beginning to end.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) IVAN WATSON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: A weekend of chaos and drama in Russia. Mercenaries declared a mutiny and then called it off in under 24 hours. Yevgeny Prigozhin issued a call for rebellion. The head of the Wagner mercenary group, accusing top Russian military commanders of gross mismanagement of the war in Ukraine. Then Prigozhin released video of an alleged Russian airstrike on a Wagner camp in Ukraine demanding revenge. Russia's defense ministry denied the attack, and soon Russia's top prosecutor announced criminal charges against Prigozhin.

[03:35:00]

Then in the early hours of Saturday, Prigozhin followed through on those threats, sending his fighter across the border from Ukraine back into Russia. Footage surfaced at dawn showing Wagner fighters surrounding the military headquarters in the southern Russian city of Rostov. Some locals stood nearby watching. At around 7:30 AM, Prigozhin was then shown dressing down senior Russian military leaders and issuing demands.

YEVGENY PRIGOZHIN, WAGNER GROUP CHIEF (through translator): Again, we came here. We want to receive the Chief of General Staff and Shoigu. Until they show up, until they show up, we are located here, blockading the city of Rostov, and we'll go to Moscow.

This video showed columns of Wagner troops heading north towards the capital, along the way claiming control of military installations in the Voronezh region. Footage later showed at least one Russian helicopter narrowly avoiding a missile. At 10 AM Moscow time, Russian President Vladimir Putin made a

televised address to the nation, calling the rebellion a stab in the back.

VLADIMIR PUTIN (through translator): All those who deliberately chose the path of treachery, who prepared an armed mutiny, who chose the path of blackmail and terrorist methods, will face inevitable punishment and will answer both to the law and to our people.

WATSON: The Kremlin announced counterterrorism measures tightening security in Moscow. But by Saturday night, suddenly a Kremlin reversal. Putin's spokesman announced a deal. Prigozhin released an audio message saying his troops would turn around and go back to field camps to avoid shedding Russian blood. Supporters chanted Wagner as fighters drove out of Rostov, giving Prigozhin handshakes as he left in this SUV.

The Kremlin says it's dropped charges and Prigozhin will go to Belarus, while promising his fighters contracts with the Russian military. For now, a crisis apparently averted. But this very public betrayal and the mercenaries' short but unimpeded march on Moscow reveals deep weakness at the heart of the Putin regime. Ivan Watson, CNN.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: Sam Greene joins me now for more on our developing story out of Russia. He is a professor of Russian politics at King's College in London. Appreciate you being with us.

SAM GREENE, PROFESSOR OF RUSSIAN POLITICS, KINGS COLLEGE LONDON: Thank you.

CHURCH: So, Vladimir Putin and Yevgeny Prigozhin have not been seen or heard from since the armed rebellion was abruptly ended and the Wagner leader offered a safe haven in Belarus. So, what does this ultimately mean for President Putin, given his leadership has been severely damaged by this challenge to his authority. Can he survive this?

GREENE: Well, look, in the short term, I think he'll be reasonably happy that he dodged a couple of bullets, so to speak. I mean, he obviously was facing an uncertain future, right, as Wagner approached Moscow. It was unclear exactly how close they were going to be able to get and what they were going to be able to achieve. He did not want, I think, to have to engage in the shooting war on his own territory with people who had until recently been fighting shoulder to shoulder with regular Russian troops on the frontlines in Ukraine.

And so, I think he will be reasonably pleased that he found a way to see off this challenge without bloodshed and without more clearly demonstrating just how brittle his hold on power may actually be, but at the same time, you know, the fact that he couldn't simply stand up and say, you know, this is a law and order, a rule of law issue, and that you cannot challenge the presidency and the military this way.

The fact that his power as president relied on an intermediary coming in from outside, the Belarusian President, Alexander Lukashenko, coming in to solve this problem essentially for him, I think does raise some very serious questions among those who rely in Russia on Putin to solve problems for them about whether or not Putin is going to be able to continue to effectively play that role.

CHURCH: And what about what about Prigozhin? He has been offered this safe haven in Belarus by President Lukashenko. But how safe will he really be given he was ready to march on Moscow in an armed rebellion and he questioned Putin's war in Ukraine?

[03:40:00]

Should he be watching his back here?

GREENE: He will probably not feel entirely secure. One of the advantages for Putin of putting Prigozhin in Belarus is that there is a high degree of political and security integration between the Russian and the Belarusian states. It is easily accessible to the Russian military, frankly, and to Russian special services. And so, Prigozhin, I think, will feel every incentive to be rather careful.

Although as we've seen in recent days, he may not be intrinsically inclined to be all of that careful. And so, we'll have to see. He has a lot of things at stake, though, right? He has made himself and a lot of other people around him quite wealthy and powerful because of the services that they have provided to Russia, not just on the frontlines in Ukraine, but getting involved in conflicts from Syria to the Central African Republic to Mozambique, providing services in through the disinformation realm online, bot networks, that sort of thing.

And I think he will have a lot of questions, as will, frankly, the rest of us in the Russian system, about what will happen to the entirety of that empire that the government has built up over the years.

CHURCH: Yeah, I mean, what do you think will happen? Because it is extensive, isn't it? And of course, he will be in Belarus.

GREENE: Yeah, I think that's an open question. And again, another challenge that the Russian government and Putin himself is going to have to resolve. Wagner and the whole sort of ecosystem around Prigozhin has been incredibly useful to Putin personally and to the Russian state. Generally, it allows them to do things that they don't want to do with their own hands, gives them a degree of plausible deniability. And in some ways, Wagner is really quite effective in the roles that it has played.

And so, Putin may be loath to lose that instrument, but it's not like, you know, an oil company or a bank where you can simply pull out one CEO and put in another, it may not be that simple to hand over this arsenal essentially to another group of leaders. And so again, you know, I think Putin will be reasonably happy that he found a quick, relatively quick solution to the immediate problem, but it does create a number of thorny issues that are probably going to bother him for months to come.

CHURCH: Yeah, we'll certainly see what the Kremlin has to say in the coming hours. Sam Greene, thank you so much for joining us and sharing your analysis. Appreciate it. Still to come, the U.S. Coast Guard convenes its highest level of investigation into the implosion of the Titan submersible. But what will the investigators be looking for? The details just ahead.

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[03:45:00]

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CHURCH: The U.S. Coast Guard says it has convened a Marine Board of Investigation, its highest investigative body, to look into the fatal implosion of the Titan submersible. Officials say their priority is to recover items from the seafloor and determine the cause of the disaster, which killed all five people on board. CNN's Gloria Pazmino has more.

GLORIA PAZMINO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Now, the Marine Board of Investigation is the highest level of investigation that the U.S. Coast Guard can conduct regarding any kind of maritime incident and what it will allow is for the Coast Guard to leverage all of its resources including working with international partners.

Now, this is a multi-step process and right now they are in the first phase which is to gather evidence. They've had the Odysseus 6000 out at the bottom of the ocean looking for pieces of the vessel, looking to uncover more pieces of evidence. Once that's completed, they will hold a public hearing, collect more testimony and more evidence, and then they will continue this investigation. I want you to listen from public officials talking about what's next in the process.

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JASON NEUBAUER, CAPTAIN, U.S. COAST GUARD: During the course of the NBI, the board will first and primarily work to determine the cause of this marine casualty and the five associated deaths. The NBI, however, is also responsible accountability aspects of the incident, and it can make recommendations to the proper authorities to pursue civil or criminal sanctions as necessary.

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PAZMINO: Now, any kind of subsequent enforcement will have to be done after a separate investigation and just another important note here is that the Marine Board of Investigation is working with the U. S., the U. K. and France, and that of course reflects the nationalities of the five people who were on board of the vessel. So, you can see this sort of multinational effort to try and bring some closure to these families. In fact, the rear admiral of the Coast Guard mentioned he had visited St. John's where we are right now to meet with some of the family members that arrived back to port yesterday.

Now, after this investigation is concluded, they will submit a report and the idea here is to understand what happened but also to make sure that safety protocols for deep sea submersible expeditions are improved so that nothing like this happens again. Reporting in Newfoundland, Gloria Pazmino, CNN.

CHURCH: And the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board is investigating the death of an airport worker who was sucked into the engine of a Delta jet in San Antonio Friday night. Delta released a statement saying it's heartbroken and grieving the loss of an aviation colleague, adding that their hearts and full support are with their family and friends. As for the airport, officials said how saddened they are by what happened and they will be sharing more as the investigation moves forward. The flight had just arrived from LA when the accident occurred.

Still to come, a huge victory for Greece's Prime Minister as he wins a strong second term in the general elections. We'll head to Athens and break down the results.

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[03:50:00]

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CHURCH: In Greece, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis has won a second four-year term, defeating his main rival by a huge margin. With almost all of the votes counted, his ruling new democracy party got more than 40 percent of the votes, while leftist Syriza polled just about 17 percent. And for more, we want to go to Elinda Lapropoulou, she joins us live

from Athens in Greece. So, good to see you, Elinda. So, Prime Minister Mitsotakis has won a second four-year term with his resounding victory. What challenges lie ahead for the Prime Minister, and how did he win this?

ELINDA LAPROPOULOU, JOURNALIST: Well, first of all, now the prime minister is no longer a newcomer like he was four years ago. Now, he's seen more as somebody with a very good track record and somebody who has delivered. And this is what the Greeks voted for in this election. They voted for the person who has put the country back on a growth path after a protracted financial crisis.

Mr. Mitsotakis had pledged to bring Greece back to growth, and he did. And it's very much an election where economy has been at the core of the debate. So, people here have voted for stability, they have voted for somebody who they want to lead them into a more positive future. Let's take a listen into what the Prime Minister had to say in his victory speech.

[03:55:00]

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KYRIAKOS MITSOTAKIS, NEW DEMOCRACY PARTY LEADER: I now feel a heavier duty to serve the country with all my strength. I never promised miracles, but I assure you that I will remain faithful to my national duty with a plan, with dedication, and above all, with hard work.

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LAPROPOULOU And that was Mr. Mitsotakis last night emerging victorious in this election. Now, he has a very challenging path ahead because although he has managed to proceed with a number of reforms, a lot more remains to be done. Greece remains a laggard in Europe in terms of its economic outcome. It remains a country that still struggles with a huge bureaucracy and a public sector that Mr. Mitsotakis has promised to cut down.

And also, a lot of the people haven't really felt the changes in the pocket. It's still a country where people are looking for better salaries, they're looking for higher tax cuts. So, this is something that the Greeks are going to be expecting from the Prime Minister this time around, Rosemary.

CHURCH: All right. Elinda Lapropoulou, many thanks for joining us. Bring us up to date on that situation. Appreciate it. Sarah Ferguson, the Duchess of York has undergone surgery for breast cancer. The U.K. reports her operation was successful and she is recovering with family in Windsor. A spokesman for the Duchess told the PA she is receiving the best medical care and her prognosis is good.

And thank you so much for spending part of your day with me. I'm Rosemary Church. CNN Newsroom continues with Max Foster, next.

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