By Athena Papakosta

Yevgeny Prigozhin reappeared. About… Sounds like the head of Team Wagner. His silhouette in the half-light looks like him. But is it him?

Let’s take things in order.

On Wednesday, a video allegedly captured by mercenary group leader Wagner was released. If his authenticity is indeed confirmed then we will indeed be talking about his first reappearance since the end of his and his group’s armed rebellion against the Russian military leadership on June 24.

In this video we hear a male voice which is very similar to that of Prigozhin. Shot in low light, it reportedly shows the leader of the mercenary group surrounded by trees and tents addressing fighters who can be heard cheering him on.

He is even heard telling his men that they “fought a worthy battle” in Ukraine while achieving too much for Russia.

He then criticizes what is unfolding on the front line and describes the situation as “disgraceful”.

Analysts at this point say that sounds like something the head of the mercenary group would say. However, what they say is missing is that he is not directly attacking (as he used to) Russia’s Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and the country’s Armed Forces Chief Valery Gerasimov.

In the continuation of the video, Prigozhin notes that his fighters “will continue” their training and hints at their possible return to Ukrainian lands “when we will be sure that we will not be forced to humiliate ourselves and our experience.”

At this point, too, analysts agree that these words also fit Prigozhin’s logic, recalling his constant complaints and outbursts of anger about Moscow’s lack of ammunition while underlining that he does not rule out the team’s return to Ukraine but on conditions.

In addition, the head of the group Wagner mentions – always addressing his fighters – that “the decision was made to stay in Belarus for a certain period of time” and that his mercenary group will use this period of time to make the army of this country “the second best in the world”.

From this point, they jump to the conclusion that Yevgeny Prigozhin is in Belarus and is abiding by what was agreed on June 24 after the alleged mediation of the Belarusian president, Alexander Lukashenko.

Until yesterday, Yevgeny Prigozhin had released some audio messages while he was last seen leaving the city in the south of Russia, Rostov.

However, last Monday, international agencies published satellite photos showing a convoy of vehicles entering Belarus. At the same time, according to Russia’s Defense Ministry, the Wagner group had completed the delivery of its weapons, and Russian President Vladimir Putin was telling a Russian newspaper that the private group does not exist as a legal entity.