Press service Prigozhin is running at full speed, Kremlin ignores Wagner boss

• Gertrude Peene

  editor online

“Wagner controls the entire territory of Soledar. I would like to emphasize once again that no units other than Wagner’s were involved in the storming of Soledar,” writes the boss of the Russian mercenary group, Yevgeny Prigozhin, on his Telegram channel in January. press service.

This week he claims that Wagner has conquered the village of Krasna Hora near Bachmut. Prigozhin has long remained secretive about his relationship with the mercenary army, known for gross human rights violations, but since last summer he has increasingly come to the fore. He does not shy away from criticism of the Russian army.

On his Telegram channel, Prigozhin regularly vents his frustration at the lack of recognition for Wagner’s achievements. He speaks highly of Wagner’s victories, while both Russian and Western sides remain silent.

The Ministry of Defense confirmed the capture of Krasna Hora, but spoke about it ‘volunteer units‘. Wagner was not mentioned. According to the American think tank Institute of War (ISW) it is a conscious effort by the ministry to replace Wagner in the fighting around Bachmut.

“You can see the rivalry around Bachmoet,” says defense expert Peter Wijninga. “Prigozhin would ‘just’ conquer Bachmut. That has not yet succeeded, but he keeps making bolder statements. He actually always claims the credit. That is very against the will of the Russian army, because the victories are absolutely not due to Wagner alone .”

“Once a week, the editors-in-chief of the Russian media come to the Kremlin to get their orders. This week they would have been told to stop reporting positively on Wagner,” says Russia expert Hubert Smeets. The recruitment of prisoners for the front has also been taken over by the army itself.

It raises the question of how long Prigzozhin will be able to speak the highest word on the war. Officially, mercenary armies are banned in Russia. There is already a lot of speculation on social media about a possible disappearance of the Wagner boss.

Prigozhin indeed seems to have overplayed his hand, says Smeets. “But it’s too early to say that this is the end of Prigozhin. I think he has something more leverage than many think.”

A major Russian troll factory, the Internet Research Agency (IRA), is owned by Prigozhin. In addition, Wagner is not only active in the war in Ukraine. “He may be able to afford the criticism as long as he is relevant to operations, such as the one in Syria.”

Prigozhin, meanwhile, continues to send messages through his Telegram channel. When asked what he thinks about Wagner being mentioned less in the Russian media, he replies that there is a “category losersis who is incapable of anything.