The boss of the Russian mercenary militia Wagner has chosen for several weeks a muscular communication strategy in which he stages a rivalry with the Russian army.
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Mayeul Aldebert
et AFP agency
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Is it a threat or a way to claim the laurels of the probable conquest of Bakhmout ? The boss of the Russian paramilitary group Wagner, Evgeny Prigozhinewhose men are on the front line in eastern Ukraine, again complained of a lack of ammunition, attributing the delays in delivery to a possible “treason».
«Orders have been given for delivery on February 23. But to date, most of the ammunition has not been sentPrigojine said in a social media post on Sunday evening. He mentioned two possible reasons for the delay: “Ordinary bureaucracy or betrayal“. In another video posted this weekend, the manager warns. “If Wagner now withdraws from Bakhmout, the whole front will collapse». «It will collapse to the borders of Russia, perhaps even further. In general, the situation will not be the most pleasant“, he continued.
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Last month, Yevgeny Prigojine had multiplied the virulent criticism of the Russian Minister of Defense, Sergei Shoigu, and the Chief of Staff, Valery Gerassimovaccusing them of committing atreasonby refusing to supply Wagner with ammunition.
The private militia could represent a quarter of Russian fighters in Ukraine. In mid-December, the White House had already estimated its workforce at 50,000 men: 10,000 mercenaries and 40,000 recruited from Russian prisons. Strengthened by its number and its influence,it is obvious to us that Wagner is on the way to becoming a rival power to the regular Russian army“, also estimated the White House in mid-December.
Communication strategy
Are these recurring tensions the sign of a real rivalry within the Russian military forces on the front? “We pay a lot of attention to Prigojine’s personal game because we would like to see political dissension“, tempers the general 2S and researcher at the FRS Olivier Kempf. “And if obviously there are struggles for influence in the Kremlin, and Prigozhin is an actor, he continueshe chose, unlike the others, a communication strategy which consists in making noise but it is difficult to know what this really translates».
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Hard to believe, for example, observes the researcher, that Wagner is encountering real supply difficulties when the report of fire is clearly to the advantage of the Russians. In any case, the head of Wagner’s militia chose to show himself. He now appears regularly alongside his men. “They fought bravely and died“, he says for example in a video where he attends the coffining of killed soldiers, and the sending of the coffins by truck to Russia.
Surrounding and evacuation
«Join the strongest private army in the world, defend your homeland, face World War III like real men“, he also enjoins in the first video. In caption on Telegram, the group indicates that recruitment offices have opened in “almost 30 cities of Russia», for volunteers from 22 to 50 years old, and promises a salary of 240 thousand rubles with «performance bonuses».
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Wagner’s fighters are on the front line in the battle for Bakhmout, which is about to fall. And just like the Ukrainian side, the mercenary group suffered heavy losses in this battle.
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Wagner’s mercenaries continue to encircle the Ukrainian locality, fiercely defended by Ukraine. According to the latest information on Monday morning, the Ukrainian soldiers have finished evacuating the east bank of the Bakhmoutovska river which separates the city in two. “So they will start to evacuate the center», specifies Olivier Kempf. “They reinforced the installations to keep the last corridor open to the West and to fall back in good order».