After the private army of mercenary ruler Yevgeny Prigozhin took control of a southern city, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak declared on Saturday that he urged all parties in Russia to safeguard citizens.

“The most important thing I’d say is for all parties to be responsible and to protect civilians,” he told the BBC in a television interview which will be broadcast in full on Sunday.

“We’re keeping a close eye on the situation and how it’s evolving on the ground as we speak. We’re in touch with our allies and in fact I will be speaking with some of them later today,” he added.