JUST IN: Prigozhin Says Wagner Forces Halting March On Moscow to Avoid Further Bloodshed

Wagner Group head Yevgeny Prigozhin put out a statement on Saturday saying his forces have “turned around” in their march to Moscow and are “returning to field camps” to avoid spilling more Russian blood.

Moscow was in the midst of preparing for an armed assault from the private army on Saturday after the mercenaries began what Russian leadership called an “armed rebellion” 24 hours ago.

Russian President Vladimir Putin vowed in an address to the nation on Saturday morning harsh consequences for those involved in the plot.

Prigozhin made the announcement via an audio message on social media, claiming that his troops were only 120 miles from Moscow, but have turned around to avoid more bloodshed, according to the Associated Press.

The AP reports:

He didn’t say whether the Kremlin has responded to his demand to oust Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu. There was no immediate comment from the Kremlin.

The announcement follows a statement from the office of Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko saying that he had negotiated a deal with Prigozhin after previously discussing the issue with Putin.

Prigozhin has accepted Lukashenko’s offer to halt the Wagner group’s advance and further steps to de-escalate the tensions, Lukashenko’s office said, adding that the proposed settlement contains security guarantees for Wagner troops. It didn’t elaborate.

The armed coup represented the most existential threat to Putin’s regime since he took power over two decades ago.

Watch the clip above via CNN.