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The Kremlin has rebuffed Western suggestions that Wagner mercenary boss Yevgeny Prigozhin was killed on its orders, dismissing it as an "absolute lie" and declining to definitively confirm his death, citing the need to wait for test results.
Key points:
- Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said there are many facts yet to be established
- An investigation into the crash is ongoing and no cause has been given
- None of the bodies have been identified
President Vladimir Putin on Thursday sent his condolences to Mr Prigozhin's family, breaking his silence after the mercenary leader's plane crashed on Wednesday evening with no survivors two months after he led a mutiny against army chiefs.
Mr Putin cited "preliminary information" as indicating that Mr Prigozhin and his top associates in the Wagner mercenary group had been killed.
Russian investigators have opened a probe into what happened, but have not yet said what they suspect caused the plane to suddenly fall from the sky north-west of Moscow.
Nor have they officially confirmed the identities of the 10 bodies recovered from the wreckage.
Western politicians and commentators have suggested that Mr Putin ordered Mr Prigozhin killed to punish him for launching a failed June 23-34 mutiny against the top brass which represented the biggest challenge to the president's rule yet.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the accusation and many others like it were false.
"There is now a great deal of speculation surrounding this plane crash and the tragic deaths of the plane's passengers, including Yevgeny Prigozhin. Of course, in the West, all this speculation is presented from a well-known angle," Mr Peskov told reporters.
"All of this is an absolute lie, and here, when covering this issue, it is necessary to base yourself on facts. There are not many facts yet. They need to be established in the course of investigative actions."
Mr Peskov said that it was important to wait for the results of various tests as well as the outcome of the investigation.
He said Mr Putin had not met Mr Prigozhin recently.
Lukashenko says Prigozhin dismissed his warnings
Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said warned Mr Prigozhin and his fellow Wagner leader Dmitry Utkin to watch out for possible threats to their lives, according to reports by state news agency BELTA.
Mr Lukashenko claimed he insisted that Wagner fighters would remain in Belarus.
Twice Mr Prigozhin dismissed concerns raised by the Belarusian leader about possible threats to his life, Mr Lukashenko said.
Mr Lukashenko said that during the June mutiny, he warned Mr Prigozhin that he would die if he continued to march on Moscow, to which he said Mr Prigozhin answered: "To hell with it — I will die."
He also claimed when Mr Prigozhin and Mr Utkin, had come to see him, he had warned them both: "Lads — you watch out."
It was not clear when that conversation took place.
Mr Lukashenko, both an old acquaintance of Mr Prigozhin and a close ally of Russia, said Mr Putin had nothing to do with the plane crash.
"I know Putin: he is calculating, very calm, even tardy," Mr Lukashenko said.
"I cannot imagine that Putin did it, that Putin is to blame. It's just too rough and unprofessional a job."
Mr Lukashenko said Wagner fighters would remain in Belarus.
"Wager lived, Wagner is living and Wagner will live in Belarus," Mr Lukashenko said. "The core remains here."
"As long as we need this unit, they will live and work with us," he said.
Reuters