Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday signed a decree obliging members of irregular armed groups to take an oath as army soldiers do, two days after the announcement of the death of Wagner Group leader Yevgeny Prigozhin in a plane crash near Moscow.
According to the text of the decree published by the Russian government’s website, these elements are required to pledge “loyalty” and “loyalty” to Russia, and to “strictly comply with the orders of commanders and (higher-ranking) officials.” This decree comes two months after Wagner’s rebellion, led by Prigozhin, against the Russian military leadership.
Russia’s civil aviation authority said Prigozhin was on the private plane that crashed.
On Friday, the Kremlin said that the private military group, Wagner, had no formal legal existence.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told a news conference that Wagner exists as a group that made a “great contribution” to Russia’s military campaign in Ukraine, and praised the “heroism” of its fighters.
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday sent his condolences to Prigozhin’s family, breaking his silence after Wednesday’s plane crash, killing all on board, two months after Prigozhin led a rebellion against Russian military leaders.
Putin said “preliminary information” indicated that Prigozhin and his senior Wagner associates were all killed and praised Prigozhin, but also said he had made some “grave mistakes”.
Some Western politicians and commentators have suggested, without providing evidence, that Putin ordered Prigozhin’s death as punishment for his June 23-24 rebellion against the Russian military leadership, which was also the biggest challenge Putin has faced since he came to power in 1999.
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2023-08-25 12:22:37
