In his first remarks since the plane crash that presumably killed Yevgeny Prigozhin, Russian President Vladimir Putin said the Wagner founder was "a man of difficult fate, but talented."

Putin said Thursday he sends condolences to "Wagner employees" on board a plane that crashed on Wednesday.

"First of all, I want to express my sincere condolences to the families of all the victims, this is always a tragedy," he said.

"Preliminary information suggests that Wagner Group employees were also on board," Putin added during a meeting with the head of the self-declared Donetsk People's Republic Denis Pushilin at the Kremlin.

"I would like to note that these people have made a significant contribution to our common cause in the fight against the neo-Nazi regime," Putin said, referring to Russia's war in Ukraine. The Russian leader has repeatedly and falsely accused the Ukrainian government of neo-Nazism.

Putin also said Russia's Investigative Committee is conducting an investigation.