Putin says Russia paid $1 bn to Wagner group over last year

Russian President Vladimir Putin said Tuesday that Moscow had paid out last year just over $1 billion to the Wagner mercenary group, which last week staged a failed mutiny.

"The state paid to the Wagner group 86.262 billion rubles (around $1 billion) for salaries for fighters and incentive rewards between May 2022 and May 2023 alone," Putin said during a televised meeting with law enforcement.