The losses on the Russian side in Ukraine are huge. Nine out of ten recruited Wagner mercenaries apparently die at the front.
Last week, Yevgeny Prigozhin boasted that his Wagner group had conquered the embattled town of Soledar, which Ukraine, however, has denied. But even if mercenary troops achieved minor military successes, they paid a high price in blood, as the British military historian writes on Twitter. Of the 270 convicts recruited from a colony near Bashkir, only 30 reportedly survived.
Wagner’s boss Yevgeny Prigozhin promises criminals: those who do not die at the front will be forgiven.AP / picturedesk.com
Those numbers would “quite accurately” reflect casualties among newly recruited fighters – just over 10% would survive. Owen refers to a Russian Telegram channel. For weeks, Wagner’s group sent countless newly recruited fighters to the front near Soledar and Bachmut, who are often described as pure cannon fodder.
Prigozhin presents himself as a great achiever
“Putin’s cook” Prigozhin, meanwhile, posted a video showing him freeing surviving prisoners. “Each of you went through things only your great-grandparents went through during the World War,” he says. “I told you that in war I need your criminal skills to kill the enemy.” Now the freedmen have enough money, enough medals and enough adrenaline for their own great-grandchildren.
Boss Wagner presented himself as a great director who would personally obtain forgiveness from the survivors of the Bachmut meat grinder. In the video published on January 17, 2023, the unscrupulous mercenary leader claims that this is the fourth round of former prisoners who have fulfilled their Wagner service according to the contract and that, therefore, he has granted them impunity.
As the think tank at the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) points out, this is the second time that Prigozhin has offered such a “forgiveness” to the public. Its first appearance was less than two weeks ago.
Read more: Commander of the Wagner fled – wants to find out EVERYTHING
Competition for Putin?
Shortly after the first “Putin’s cook” announcement, Russian human rights adviser Eva Merkacheva revealed that Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin had signed a secret decree granting impunity to Wagner’s fighters in Ukraine.
Read more: Putin secretly pardons criminals – for cannon fodder
Under Russian law, only the president himself can grant pardons to criminals. The fact that his longtime confidant Prigozhin now acts as if he himself has the power to make decisions is seen by ISW as an attempt to exaggerate his political influence and power in the public eye.
Follow us on social networks
All current developments in Ukraine’s war at a glance >
Navigation count 20 minutes, time rcp 18.01.2023, 18:55| Act: 01/18/2023, 7:02 pm