Wagner mercenary boss says it will not sign contract with Russian army

Wagner mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin says his fighters will not sign any contract with Russian army as Moscow moves to take control of paramilitary group

• Russian Defence Ministry said all ‘volunteer detachments’ must sign contracts
• Yevgeny Prigozhin often attacks Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu’s war record
• It comes after a Russian general accused Wagner group of kidnapping his men

The chief of the feared Wagner mercenary group has resisted an attempt by the Russian defence minister to take control of its ranks, as a bitter feud between the private fighting force and Moscow appears to come to a head.

Yevgeny Prigozhin said today that his fighters would not sign any contract with Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu, publicly defying what appear to be efforts to rein in his influence. 

Prigozhin has repeatedly attacked President Vladimir Putin’s top military brass for what he casts as treachery, slamming him for failing to fight the war in Ukraine properly and taunting him about coming to the frontline.

Tensions with Moscow were ratcheted up when mercenaries kidnapped a frontline Russian general last week, who admitted in a humiliating video to being drunk on duty after allegedly firing on a Wagner vehicle.

A video later emerged which showed the general, Roman Venevitin, accusing Wagner of torturing Putin’s soldiers and Prigozhin of discrediting the army – a crime which could see him jailed.

Yevgeny Prigozhin said today that his fighters would not sign any contract with Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu. Pictured: Prigozhin and his troops in Bakhmut

Prigozhin has repeatedly attacked Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu for what he casts as treachery for failing to fight the war in Ukraine properly

Russian Lt-Colonel Roman Venevitin claimed Wagner forces, who are supposed to be on Russia’s side in the war, kidnapped Russian soldiers before torturing and raping them

In the video on Friday, which was reportedly orchestrated by Russian military leaders after Venevitin was released, he said of Prigozhin: ‘You are engaged in active discrediting of the Russian armed forces.

‘I [am speaking] to convey to the Russian public the truth about what happened, to tell some facts about the so-called Wagner,’ he said. ‘Honour requires me to do this.’

This allegation, which Venevitin appears to read from a script, hints that the authorities are attempting to disempower Prigozhin, who slammed the allegations about his troops’ violence towards Russian ranks as ‘absolute nonsense’. 

Now Russia’s defence ministry has urged all ‘volunteer detachments’ to sign contracts with the defence ministry by the end of the month, a step it said would increase the effectiveness of the Russian army.

Though the ministry did not mention Wagner by name in its public statement, the Russian media reported that it was an attempt by Shoigu to bring the mercenaries to heel.

Prigozhin routinely attacks President Vladimir Putin’s top military brass (pictured together in 2020)

‘Wagner will not sign any contracts with Shoigu,’ Prigozhin said in response to a request for comment on the matter. The order, he said, did not apply to Wagner.

Prigozhin said Wagner was completely subordinate to the interests of Russia but that its highly efficient command structure would be damaged by reporting to Shoigu.

‘Shoigu cannot properly manage military formations,’ Prigozhin said, adding that Wagner coordinated its actions in Ukraine with General Sergei Surovikin, nicknamed ‘General Armageddon’ by the Russian media.

Prigozhin has said the order to sign contracts with the defence ministry did not apply t Wagner. Pictured speaking in Bakhmut last month

The defence ministry said that in the interests of increasing the effectiveness of ‘volunteer detachments’, all such units – or their men – would have to sign a contract with the defence ministry by July 1.

It did not mention Wagner by name but it routinely refers to Wagner as ‘volunteer assault detachments’.

‘This will give the volunteer formations the necessary legal status, create unified approaches to the organisation of comprehensive provision and fulfilment of their tasks,’ the ministry said.

‘These measures will increase the combat capabilities and effectiveness of the armed forces and their volunteer detachments,’ Deputy Defence Minister Nikolai Pankov said.

READ MORE: Wagner mercenaries are ‘raping, kidnapping and torturing RUSSIAN soldiers’: Astonishing claim by one of Putin’s officers who was captured by Yevgeny Prigozhin’s men

Prigozhin said the ministry might use the failure to comply with the order as a reason to deprive Wagner of supplies.

‘What could happen after this order is that they will not give us weapons and ammunition. We will figure it out, as they say,’ Prigozhin said.

‘But when the thunder breaks, they will come running and bring weapons and ammunition with a request to help.’ 

Wagner mercenaries have been fighting for Putin in Ukraine and are credited with seizing the embattled city of Bakhmut from Ukrainian armed forces after months of bloody warfare.

But their success has seemingly angered regular Russian army commanders.

Wagner chief Prigozhin has launched several verbal tirades at Putin’s military leaders. 

He has accused them of ordering their troops to retreat from their positions and leaving Wagner fighters unprotected on the frontlines. 

In a furious rant late last month, Prigozhin screamed vulgar insults at Russia’s defence officials, whom he described as ‘smelly scumbags’ and ‘b*******’. 

And last week, he labelled it a ‘disgrace’ that Kyiv’s troops were able to push back Russian lines and seize Berkhivka, a town in the northern suburbs of Bakhmut.

He hit out at Sergei Shoigu and army chief Valery Gerasimov, taunting them and urging them to go to the frontlines and see the failures for themselves as the armed factions spiral towards civil war. 

Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin has launched several verbal tirades at Putin’s military leaders

‘Now part of the settlement of [Berkhivka] has already been lost, the troops are slowly falling back. What a disgrace! 

‘Shoigu, Gerasimov, I urge you to come to the front, raise your pistols at your men to make them go forward. Come on, you can! 

‘And if you can’t, then you will die as heroes.’ 

In another notable development which could infuriate Russian military leadership, Prigozhin suggested that he is ready to deploy his men on Russian soil.

Speaking via Telegram he said that Wagner was ready to fight against insurrectionist forces in the Belgorod region. 

Despite huge losses, and a ban on recruiting prisoners from Russia’s penal colonies, Prigozhin is still thought to have up to 60,000 men at his disposal.

Wagner is one of several private armies in Russia. Chechen warlord leader Ramzan Kadyrov controls a heavily armed group of his own, and Russian energy giant Gazprom has set up its own private military company. 

Source: Read Full Article