Biden: "If I Were Prigozhin, I Would Be Careful with Food"

U.S. President Joe Biden mentioned the possibility that Yevgeny Prigozhin, the head of the mercenary company Wagner Group that instigated a rebellion in Russia, could be assassinated with poison.

President Joe Biden [Photo by Yonhap News]

On the 13th (local time), during a joint press conference with Finnish President Sauli Niinist? in Helsinki, Biden was asked about Prigozhin's whereabouts. He replied, "Only God knows what will happen to him," adding, "We don't know where he is or what negotiations he has had."

He then said, "If I were him, I would be careful about what I eat," and added, "I would keep a close watch on the menu."

Although Prigozhin backed down immediately after the rebellion, this statement is interpreted as implying the possibility that Russian President Vladimir Putin might have him killed for having rebelled.

This appears to be a reference to the case of Alexei Navalny, a prominent Russian dissident and considered an opponent of President Putin. Navalny, through the Anti-Corruption Foundation he established in 2011, exposed numerous corruption allegations against high-ranking Russian officials. In 2020, he suddenly collapsed on a plane due to symptoms of poisoning. Some have continuously claimed that Putin attempted to assassinate Navalny with poison.

However, some speculate that President Biden’s remarks might be a kind of psychological warfare intended to prevent Putin and Prigozhin from becoming close again.

When asked at the press conference whether he was concerned about new measures Putin might take following the Wagner rebellion, Biden said, "I do not believe there is a realistic possibility that Putin would use nuclear weapons."

On the same day, President Biden also expressed his position on considering a prisoner exchange to secure the release of Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reporter Evan Gershkovich, who was arrested in Russia in March on espionage charges.

He said, "I am seriously considering a prisoner exchange," adding, "I am serious about doing everything possible to free Americans who are being held illegally in Russia or elsewhere, and that process is ongoing."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.