The Wagner mercenaries play an important role in Russia's military operations. Its existence was veiled for a long time, but the group is now presenting itself in the media - and is now opening its first official headquarters.
The Wagner mercenary group, which has been operating in secret for a long time, has opened its first official headquarters in Russia in St. Petersburg, as reported by journalists from the AFP news agency. On the opening day, people in camouflage clothes walked through the building and looked at an exhibition showing drones.
Entrepreneur Yevgeny Prigozhin recently publicly stated that he founded the group. He announced the opening of the office last week in online networks. The task of the Wagner Center is to "create a comfortable environment for the development of new ideas to improve Russia's defense capabilities," it said.
Mercenaries from the Wagner group are deployed in Latin America, Africa and the Ukraine, among other places. The group is playing an increasingly important role, especially in Russia's offensive in the neighboring country. For years, the group has been suspected of playing a role in pursuing Moscow's ambitions abroad. However, the Kremlin denies any connection.
According to British secret services, the mercenary group has significantly weakened its strict hiring criteria due to significant losses. "It has maintained relatively high recruitment standards in previous conflicts and many of its mercenaries had previously served as professional Russian soldiers," according to the Ministry of Defense in London. Most recently, Wagner boss Prigoshin suggested in an online post that the group would now also recruit prisoners with serious illnesses such as hepatitis C. "The acceptance of prisoners with serious medical concerns underscores that quantity is now the priority over experience or quality," the UK ministry said.
Prigozhin also recently discussed plans to build a 200-kilometer defense position called the "Wagner Line" in eastern Ukraine. "This undertaking would require a great deal of manpower. There is a realistic possibility that some of the prisoners recruited from prisons will first be used to build up the defences," it said in London.
