Head of the Wagner mercenaries: Should Prigozhin turn the war for Putin?

After the hasty withdrawal of Russian troops from Kharkiv and a lack of success reports, Russia's Defense Minister Shoigu is under pressure.

Head of the Wagner mercenaries: Should Prigozhin turn the war for Putin?

After the hasty withdrawal of Russian troops from Kharkiv and a lack of success reports, Russia's Defense Minister Shoigu is under pressure. A US think tank is now bringing the head of the Wagner Group, Prigozchin, into play as his successor. He is currently making a name for himself with a recruitment video.

After numerous military failures by Russian troops in Ukraine, displeasure among Russia's military experts and military bloggers is growing louder. The first are already calling for the dismissal of Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu. According to the US think tank Institute for the Study of War (ISW), some bloggers have already suggested a possible successor: the financier of the Wagner mercenary group, Yevgeny Prigozhin.

The Wagner Group is already involved in the war in Ukraine with numerous fighters, but was previously also active in a number of foreign operations - for example in Syria or Mali. The group is notorious for its extreme cruelty. The ISW writes that the well-known military blogger Maksim Fomin has already met with Prigozhin to discuss the situation in Ukraine.

This is seen as an indication that the Kremlin takes the military experts' criticism of the inefficiency of warfare very seriously. There is speculation that President Putin may sacrifice his Defense Minister Shoigu as a scapegoat for the Kharkiv defeat to please military bloggers and nationalists. Experts suspect that Prigozhin could then succeed him.

However, he is currently drawing attention to himself with a video in which he tries to recruit Russian convicts to fight at the front. The Russian military has an enormous need for soldiers due to high losses. Recruiting them, however, is not easy. Especially since the Kremlin has so far shied away from general mobilization. For months there have been reports of recruitment attempts, sometimes under duress, in the self-proclaimed republics of Luhansk and Donetsk, but also in remote Russian regions. Prigozhin's speech now proves who should fight and what conditions apply to these fighters in the war.

In a speech to an estimated few dozen prisoners, Prigozhin admits that he runs the private military company Wagner. He has repeatedly denied this in the past and has also taken legal action against these claims. Then he says that the war in Ukraine is difficult, unlike in the Czech Republic or Afghanistan. For that he needs men. According to Prigoschin, clear rules should apply to the fighters - both in terms of recruitment and behavior in combat.

First of all, the men should not be younger than 22 years and not older than 50 years. However, Prigozhin directly restricts that younger men could also take part in the fight, provided that relatives did not object. The maximum age also seems to be a vague guideline. Prigozhin says physical strength is ultimately key. This would be tested and based on that it would be decided whether you were suitable as a fighter. The men would be needed as infantrymen, i.e. simply soldiers. In addition, they should apparently serve for six months.

According to Prigozchin's specifications, there would be three specific cases of sin for combat use. The first is desertion. Prigozhin says no one stays behind, no one retreats, or surrenders and is taken prisoner. In their upcoming training, the fighters would learn that if they surrender, they would have to carry two hand grenades. This probably means that the soldiers should blow themselves up and enemy soldiers using the grenades.

The second sin is alcohol or drugs. Prigozhin says they reserve the right to withdraw fighters suspected of drug or alcohol abuse at any time. He even announces polygraph tests to check the stability of the fighters.

According to Prigoshin, the third fall from grace is looting and sexual contact with local women. One observes carefully whether the fighters adhered to it, however: "Mistakes happen," says the Wagner financier in the video. With this, Prigozhin is obviously alluding to the allegations of rape that are often leveled against Russian soldiers. But Prigozhin doesn't seem to want to stop it.

According to Wall Street Journal reporter Matthew Luxmoore, the men had five minutes to decide whether or not to be recruited. Prigozhin promised them an amnesty after their return. That he can promise such a thing, if true, at least suggests he has official approval from the highest authority. Prigozhin is said to have close contacts with Putin, which he constantly denies.