Wagner Group founder Yevgeny Prigozhin states that his forces have crossed into Russia with intentions to “damage” any person standing in their path to Moscow.
Prigozhin on Friday introduced that he was “declaring war on the Russian Ministry of Protection,” pursuing an alleged assault on his mercenaries in Ukraine. Regardless of fighting along with Moscow’s forces in Ukraine, the paramilitary chief has been a regular critic of Russian navy management, having shown certain disdain for Russian Protection Minister Sergei Shoigu.
Early Saturday morning, Prigozhin claimed in an audio recording shared to Telegram that his forces had “crossed condition borders in all locations,” alleging that his fighters faced no resistance and have been in its place “hugged” by border guards. He claimed that the alleged assault on his forces had been requested by Valery Gerasimov, chief of the Basic Staff of the Russian Armed Forces.
Newsweek has not independently confirmed any of Prigozhin’s promises, with nearby media shops also getting unsuccessful to confirm the report of his mercenary troops crossing the border at the time of publication.
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“As of now, we’ve crossed the point out borders in all spots,” Prigozhin said, according to a translation from the WarTranslated undertaking. “Border guards came in the direction of us and hugged our fighters. Now, we are getting into Rostov. Units of the Ministry of Protection, in fact, the conscripts who ended up thrown to block our path, moved absent.”
The mercenary leader went on to accuse the Russian armed forces of “killing little ones.” He alleged that Shoigu was “throwing untrained soldiers, conscripts involved, into the war” in Ukraine and was trying to use “18-calendar year-old lads” to resist his purported attack, while warning that his forces would “demolish” any resistance.
“We do not battle with little ones,” Prigozhin claimed. “We only fight with industry experts. But if a person stands in our path, we will wipe out Every thing in our way. … We are moving ahead, going to the stop.”
In yet another audio message, Prigozhin denounced “speculations” that his alleged assault on the Russian armed forces was interfering with the war work in Ukraine, arguing that his aim was only on “criminals conserving their a****,” especially naming Shoigu and Gerasimov.
Prigozhin claimed that a Russian helicopter fired at his convoy a small time afterwards, before remaining shot down by Wagner forces. The declare has not been verified by regional media or Newsweek.
In a statement shared on Telegram, Rostov Governor Vasily Golubev did not affirm that any Wagner forces were in the location but urged residents to continue to be indoors and stressed that “focus” was essential to “maintain order” and basic safety.
“The latest problem demands the maximum focus of all forces to keep get,” Golubev said. “Legislation enforcement businesses do anything necessary to guarantee the protection of inhabitants of the region. I inquire every person to keep on being calm and not depart the property unnecessarily.”
In Ukraine, numerous Russian air assaults were claimed. Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko urged residents to continue to be in shelters next explosions and the activation of air raid sirens, according to The New York Situations.
Newsweek has achieved out to the Russian Ministry of Defense for remark.
