Putin’s ‘Chef’ Recruiting Prisoners To Join Wagner In Ukraine

Putin's 'Chef' Recruiting Prisoners To Join Wagner In Ukraine

Yevgeny Prigozhin, head of the
Wagner group, said those who do not want to send convicts to fight should send
their own children instead.

Earlier, leaked footage showed
him telling inmates they would be freed if they served six months with his
group.

The Wagner group is believed
to have been fighting in Ukraine since 2014.

In a statement published on
social media after the video went viral, Mr. Prigozhin said that if he were in
prison he would “dream of” joining the Wagner group to “pay my
debt to the Motherland”.

He added a message to those
who do not want mercenaries or prisoners to fight.

“It’s either private
military companies and prisoners or your children – decide for yourself.”

However, the statement did not
explicitly address the video or admit that it was genuine.

The UK’s defense ministry said
the recruitment of prisoners indicated that Russia was suffering from a
“critical” shortage of combat infantry troops.

The video – verified by the
BBC – would confirm long-held suspicions that Russia hopes to increase troops
by recruiting prisoners.

Russian law does not allow
prisoners to be freed in exchange for military or mercenary service, but Mr. Prigozhin said in the video that “nobody goes back behind bars” if
they serve with the Wagner group.

“If you serve six months,
you are free,” he said. But he warned potential recruits against
desertion, adding: “if you arrive in Ukraine and decide it’s not for you,
we will execute you”.

The video appears to have been
taken in the prison’s exercise yard. It is not known who filmed it, when, or
how it was released.

The BBC geo-located the
footage to a penal colony in Russia’s central Mari El Republic. Facial
recognition tools suggested the recruiter was Mr. Prigozhin, and this was
separately confirmed by multiple sources.

 

NO COMMENTS

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here

Exit mobile version