Has Yevgeny Prigojine passed a point of no return? In a video of some five minutes, the boss of the Russian paramilitaries of the Wagner Group threatens, Friday, May 5, to withdraw from May 10 his fighters from the city of Bakhmout. Its troops have been engaged since last summer in a bloody battle for control of the city in eastern Ukraine, located in Donetsk Oblast, still partly held by the Ukrainian army.
“We were going to take the city of Bakhmout before May 9 [a date celebrating the victory over Nazi Germany in 1945]. When they saw this, the military bureaucrats stopped the shipments” of ammunition, the businessman accuses in this video published by his press service. “Therefore, from May 10, 2023, we will withdraw from Bakhmout,” he adds, saying he refuses that his “guys, without ammunition, suffer unnecessary and unjustified losses”. "We are awaiting an order to leave Bakhmout. We will be in Bakhmout until May 9 (…). Afterwards, we will go to the rear camps,” he adds.
Asked by the press, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov replied that he "saw these statements in the media", but refused to comment on them.
Charge against Sergei Shoigu and Valery Gerasimov
In another particularly virulent video published overnight from Thursday to Friday, Mr. Prigozhin specifically accuses Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and Russian Chief of Staff Valery Gerasimov of being responsible for the losses. of the Wagner Group. Strolling among dozens of bodies presented as mercenaries killed in action, he says, "They died so you could fatten up in your offices!" His face contorted with rage and unleashing a shower of insults, he cried, "Shoigu!" Gerasimov! Where are my fucking shells?! »
It was not immediately clear whether these words expressed a firm decision or an ultimatum: the boss of the Wagner Group often makes impulsive statements, out of anger, before sometimes backtracking. This ultimatum comes after weeks of growing tensions between the Wagner Group and the military. Mr. Prigojine regularly accuses the general staff of not providing enough ammunition to the Wagner Group, on the front line in the battle of Bakhmout, to deprive it of a victory that would overshadow the regular army.
The mercenary company has suffered heavy losses in recent months trying to take the city. The paramilitary group has conquered a large part of it, but fails to take the last Ukrainian positions. If the Kremlin denies any tension within the Russian forces, the latest statements by Mr. Prigojine prove the opposite. Analysts believe his frequent public attacks on the military are aimed at pressuring Russian President Vladimir Putin to intervene on his behalf.
