Kremlin wants more control
London: Russia would like to replace Wagner group
4/4/2023 9:58 am
The Wagner Group is an important support for Russia in the war against Ukraine. The mercenaries are primarily controlled by the group’s head, Prigozhin, who has long had a feud with the Defense Ministry. Accordingly, the Kremlin wants more compliant mercenary units.
According to information from British secret services, Russia is planning to build up further mercenary troops for the war against Ukraine. The goal is to replace the Wagner group in its “significant” role, the Ministry of Defense said in London. Because of the “high-profile feud” between the Ministry of Defense and Wagner, Russia’s military leadership wants a private army that they can better control. “However, no other known Russian private army currently matches the size or fighting power of Wagner,” it said.
In principle, Russia finds the use of private mercenaries in Ukraine useful, according to the British ministry. These would pay better and be more efficient than the regular army. In addition, the Russian leadership probably had the impression that the loss of private troops would be tolerated more by society than dead and wounded regular soldiers, it was said in London.
The head of the Wagner Group, Yevgeny Prigozhin, had repeatedly criticized the military leadership in the Kremlin, which did not spare Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu. Prigozhin regularly complains that the army is not providing his fighters with enough ammunition.
Wagner Group has a lot of experience with wars
Officially, private armies are banned in Russia. However, Prigozhin’s Wagner troupe has already completed military assignments in Syria and several African countries where the deployment of regular Russian soldiers was too delicate. In the war against the Ukraine, Wagner appears quite openly; Prigozhin was also allowed to temporarily recruit prisoners for his troops in penal camps.
Since the beginning of the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine, the British Ministry of Defense has published daily updates on the course of the war. Citing intelligence information, the British government wants to both counter the Russian narrative and keep allies in line. Moscow accuses London of a targeted disinformation campaign.