State Department says US is working with G7 allies amid crisis in Russia
President Joe Biden has held crisis talks with top allies in Europe, as Russia's Wagner Group private mercenaries launched an armed rebellion against the country's leader Vladimir Putin. Biden spoke with his counterparts in Britain, France and Germany on Saturday, as Wagner fighters advanced on Moscow after commandeering some military facilities in southern Russia. British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, French President Emmanuel Macron, and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz joined the call, according to a White House readout. 'The leaders discussed the situation in Russia. They also affirmed their unwavering support for Ukraine,' the White House said in a statement. As well, Secretary of State Antony held a call on Saturday morning with his and EU counterparts and discussed the rapidly evolving situation in Russia, the State Department said. 'The United States will stay in close coordination with Allies and partners as the situation continues to develop,' Blinken wrote on . Blinken spoke with all of his G7 counterparts from , France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United Kingdom, and the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, the State Department said. 'Secretary Blinken reiterated that support by the United States for Ukraine will not change,' State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said in a release. Meanwhile, the Kremlin says Putin spoke to leaders of Russia's own close allies on Saturday, following the armed rebellion launched by mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Putin spoke on the phone with the leaders of Belarus, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan and 'informed his counterparts of the situation.' Putin also spoke with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Turkey is a NATO member, but has cultivated ties with Russia, including through deals to purchase military hardware from Moscow. A Kremlin statement said Putin informed Erdogan 'about the situation in the country related to an attempted armed rebellion,' and the Turkish president 'expressed full support for the steps of the Russian leadership.' The Wagner forces are being led by Wagner Group owner Prigozhin, who on Friday called for an armed uprising to oust Putin's defense minister, Sergei Shoigu. Though the situation on the ground in Russia remained highly fluid and uncertain, there were indications that Wagner forces were advancing swiftly on Moscow by Saturday evening. The governor of Russia's Lipetsk province said Saturday that the mercenary group has entered the region. The Lipetsk region is about 225 miles south of Moscow and much closer to the capital than Rostov-on-Don, where Wagner forces appeared on Friday night. Authorities 'are taking all necessary measures to ensure the safety of the population. The situation is under control,' governor Igor Artamonov said on Telegram. He did not give details about the Wagner presence, but asked residents to stay at home and refrain from traveling. In a sign of how seriously the Kremlin took Prigozhin's threat, riot police and the National Guard scrambled to tighten security at key facilities in Moscow, including government agencies and transport infrastructure, Russian state media reported. There also was tighter security in areas between the southern city of Rostov-on-Don, where Prigozhin's Wagner group appeared to be in control of local military headquarters, and Moscow. In the neighboring Tambov region, mass events were canceled Saturday, including high school graduation parties. Russia's Education Ministry said such parties were being postponed until July 1 in Moscow, the region around the capital and 'a number of other regions where additional anti-terrorist measures have been introduced.' In the capital, traffic on bridges across the Moscow River was suspended as the city went into lockdown. Police officers in bulletproof vests and with machine guns were seen near the entrance of the major highway that links Moscow with Voronezh and Rostov-on-Don. Developing story, more to follow.