Yevgeny Prigoyine films dozens of the bodies of his mercenaries and accuses Russian army officials of refusing to supply him with ammunition.
By Le Figaro
Published 05/05/2023 at 09:10, updated 05/05/2023 at 10:04
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Yevgeny Prigoyine, leader of the Wagner militia. screenshot
The video, broadcast by Evguéni Prigojine himself on social networks, is of rare violence. We see the militia leader Wagner, who shows dozens of corpses at his feet, which he portrays as his own men, and insults high-ranking officers of the Russian army in front of the running camera. “These men from Wagner who died, their blood is still fresh,” begins the head of the paramilitary group, pointing to the corpses scattered on the ground. “It’s over for everyone. And now listen to me,” he continues, approaching the camera.
“They’re someone’s damn fathers, someone’s sons. And these scum who don’t give ammunition (…) will eat their remains in hell (…). We are 70 percent short of ammunition,” the businessman close to Vladimir Putin continues. “Shoigu! Gerasimov! Where is the damn ammunition?”, is also the commander of the Russian offensive in Ukraine.
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“Look at her, you bastards! (…) You relax in expensive clubs (…) Your children make videos on YouTube, and you, you believe that you are the masters of life?” the Wagner boss howls. “You came here as volunteers and died so you could stuff yourself in your offices (…) If we got the standard ammunition, there would be five times fewer deaths,” the “businessman” accuses.
tensions with the Kremlin
Relations between the “Putin chef” and the Kremlin have been strained for months. As the conflict dragged on, the paramilitaries responsible for leading the frontlines of the Battle of Bakhmout regularly claimed captures across the city.
In February, the head of the paramilitary group made the same accusation of “treason” against Russian army officers. In an audio recording released by his press service, he was heard urging the Russians to pressure the army to supply his men with ammunition. “If every Russian at his level – so as not to call anyone to demonstrate – would simply say ‘Give Wagner mussels’ (…) then that would be important,” explained the entrepreneur and accompanied them to a slightly blurred photo of corpses and a screenshot of his request for ammo. An unprecedented appeal in Russia, where any criticism of the Kremlin-led war is harshly suppressed.
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“Relations between Prigoyine and the Kremlin have been strained for several months on the issue of artillery support, but things are improving here,” Joseph Henrotin, editor-in-chief of Defense and International Security magazine, said on Twitter. The video was unprecedented in terms of cruelty “in the picture (dead lined up) and in the sound,” the expert continued.