KYIV(AFP) – Owners of the Russian military company Wagner on Friday accused the Moscow military command of running out of ammunition and said they would withdraw troops next week from prolonged fighting in the eastern Ukraine town of Bakhmut.
Evgeny Prigozhin, a wealthy businessman with long-standing ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin, believes Wagner will conquer Bakhmut by May 9, Russia’s Victory Day, which celebrates the defeat of Nazi Germany claimed to have planned However, he said they were suffering many casualties due to lack of supplies and would hand over the operation to regular forces on May 10.
This isn’t the first time Prigogine has been furious about ammunition shortages, blaming the Russian military with which he has long been at odds. Known for his rampage, he has previously made unverifiable claims and threats. but it’s not running. A Prigogine spokesman also released a video on Friday in which he said he stood in front of about 30 uniformed bodies lying on the ground, the Wagner fighter who died alone on Thursday. Angered, he asks Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and Chief of Staff Valery Gerasimov for ammunition.
“These are someone’s fathers and someone’s sons,” says Prigogine, cursing at the corpse. “Those scum who don’t give me ammunition will eat their guts out in hell.”
Wagner led the battle for control of Bahmut, the longest and possibly bloodiest battle of the war. There he fought for more than eight months and is believed to have claimed thousands of lives. Wagner’s withdrawal would deal a heavy blow to the Russian campaign.
For the Ukrainian side, Bakhmut has become an important symbol of resistance to Russian aggression. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says his defeat could build international support for a deal that could force Ukraine into unacceptable compromises.
Ukrainian officials were skeptical of Prigogine’s claims of ammunition shortages. Military Intelligence Director Andriy Chernyakh told the Associated Press that Prigozhin is trying to “justify his failed actions” to capture Bakhmut by May 9. Shoigu did not immediately respond to Prigozhin, but reported that his ministry had instructed officials to ensure a “continuous supply” of all necessary weapons and military equipment for the Russian army. In contrast to Prigozhin’s visibility, Shoigu was shown inspecting military equipment and weapons intended for Russian forces in Ukraine.
Late last year, the US estimated that Wagner had about 50,000 employees in Ukraine. This includes 10,000 contractors and his 40,000 prisoners recruited by the company. That makes it a small part of the Russian military.John Kirby, US spokesman. The National Security Council said this week that the US estimates that nearly half of his 20,000 Russian soldiers killed in Ukraine since December were Bakhmut’s Wagner fighters. Prigogine’s conflict with the Russian army dates back to Wagner’s creation ten years ago. During the war in Ukraine, he publicly accused several senior Russian military officials of incompetence.
The general Prigogine criticized was dismissed, but other high-ranking officials seem to maintain the Kremlin’s confidence. In January, Putin handed over command of Russian forces in Ukraine to Gerasimov, which some observers interpreted as an attempt to downsize Prigozhin.
Prigozhin said on Friday that Russian regulars were supposed to protect the flanks while Wagner’s troops advanced, but he “barely held them” and had “tens, rarely hundreds” of troops.
When asked by the AP about Prigozhin’s testimony, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said in a daily briefing with reporters that he had seen media reports but would not comment further.
Also on Friday, an oil refinery in Russia’s southern Krasnodar region, which borders the annexed Crimea peninsula, was briefly set on fire after a drone strike, Russian state news agency TASS reported to the emergency services. quoted and reported. Reports said the fire was small and quickly extinguished.
