DISINFO: The West is behind the terrorist attack on Prigozhin
SUMMARY
It is sure, the West, is behind this terrorist attack [on Prigozhin's airplane] in one form or another. This proceeds from simple reasoning. Look, from the bits and pieces of information that's been coming in, the airplane just came out of maintenance. This is an Embraer. What spare parts were installed? What could have been done at that moment?
RESPONSE
No evidence given to support the conspiracy theory around events coming out of Russia on 23 August 2023 when according to Russia's emergency ministry, Prigozhin was reported as having died in an airplane crash.
The Brazilian-built Embraer airplane was en route from Moscow to Saint Petersburg when it crashed, killing all 10 people on board. Russian state-owned news agency TASS quoted the Russian national aviation authority that Prigozhin had been on the passenger list of the crashed flight.
There is no credible evidence given to back up the claims that a terrorist attack was committed by 'the West'.
The Brazilian Embraer manufacturer said it was aware of a plane crash in Russia involving a Legacy 600 aircraft, but it did not have further information about the case and had not provided support services for the jet since 2019.
"Embraer has complied with international sanctions imposed on Russia," the plane maker said. Sanctions block Western plane makers from providing parts or support for planes operated in Russia.
Embraer has only recorded one accident with this type of aircraft in more than 20 years of service, and that was not related to mechanical failure, reminds Reuters.
The geopolitical aspects is puzzling and confusing . Usually pro-Kremlin outlets approach Brazil not as a "Western" country but as Latin American country sympathetic to listening to Moscow and now as a member of enlarged BRICS-group. It seems odd to now suggest that Embraer is a "Western player".
Western press have reported cautiously on what happened to the airplane. Speaking to CNN, US officials cautioned that it was too early to draw any conclusions about the cause, but a number of possibilities are being evaluated, including an on-board explosive device causing the crash of the plane carrying Evgeny Prigozhin and other Wagner mercenary leaders.
In late June 2023, soon after Prigozhin's mutiny was settled and safety was guaranteed to Prigozhin, Russian State TV distributed archive footage with Putin saying how he never forgets treason. In another pro-Kremlin TV programme, a guest, State Duma deputy Guruliov said that suicide may be the only choice for Prigozhin after his mutiny.
See a similar case There is foreign trail in Prigozhin's uprising. See more on Wagner mercenaries.