The private military company (PMC) "Wagner" by Yevhen Pryhozhyn lost almost 40 000 previously recruited prisoners during the war in Ukraine.
This was stated by the head of the "Sitting Russia" ["Rusʼ Sidyaschaya"] charitable foundation Olha Romanova in an interview with the My Russian Rights channel.
According to the human rights activist, by the end of December, approximately 43 000 Russian prisoners were recruited to the PMC "Wagner", later this number increased to 50 000.
"Ten thousand of them are fighting at the front today, because all the others were killed, "three hundred", disappeared, deserted or surrendered," she noted.
According to Romanova, the mass desertion of prisoners from "Wagner" began in the fall. At the same time, many fled from the front in Russia with weapons.
Romanova suggested that Yevhen Pryhozhyn himself does not keep track of the missing and deserters among the mercenaries — everyone is simply recorded among the dead. This is also indicated by the cases when relatives of the dead in Russia receive empty coffins.
- The Russian PMC "Wagner" takes an active part in the war against Ukraine and is involved not only in battles, but also in the construction of defense fortifications in the occupied territories. Also, the "Wagnerians" are probably responsible for a number of executions of video prisoners and war crimes.
- In November, EU deputies proposed to recognize the PMC "Wagner" as a terrorist organization. The relevant bill was also submitted to the U.S. Senate.