Yevgeny Prigozhin is Putin’s right-hand man and the man for the rough stuff.Bild: AP / Uncredited
Politics
He is Putin’s right-hand man, can rule and rule as he pleases and is therefore also known as “Putin’s cook” – the man for the rough stuff: Yevgeny Prigozhin. The Russian oligarch is the head of the notorious paramilitary group Wagner.
In the past, the Kremlin even denied that the government had anything to do with the Wagner Group.
Since the outbreak of war, the private army has been involved in numerous brutal battles – but also took care of the Russian invasion of the Ukraine about Russia’s dirtier deals.
At the weekend, Wagner boss Prigozchin confused with a blog entry about a possible end of the war.
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Wagner boss Prigozhin hints at the end of the war
Many Ukrainian media referenced a blog post by the 61-year-old over the weekend, which said: “For the power of the state and for the Gesellschaft it is necessary today to put some fat dot after the military special operation.” For background information, more than a year later, circles loyal to the Kremlin still describe the war as a “special military operation.”
Prigozhin went on to write in the text published on Friday:
“The ideal variant would be to announce the end of the military special operation and to declare that Russia has achieved all of its intended goals – and in some respects we have indeed achieved them.”
He added: “For Russia there is always a risk that the situation at the Front can deteriorate after the start of the (Ukrainian) counter-offensive.” Experts expect a Ukrainian offensive in the coming weeks.
The Wagner group is known for its bloodthirsty nature.Image: IMAGO / SNA
The only option at the moment is to “get stuck” in the occupied territories, said Prigozhin. However, this would mean a retreat from the Kremlin’s actual war aims. Among other things, they envisage the complete conquest of the four Ukrainian regions of Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhia and Cherson. They were illegally annexed by Russia last year.
At the same time, however, Prigozhin spoke out against any negotiations that would provide for the cession of territories occupied by Russia to Ukraine. Contrary to his previous words, he then wrote that the fighting must continue – and threatened the Ukrainian army: “See you in Bakhmut.”
Over the past few months, Prigozhin has repeatedly publicly criticized the Russian army in order to make himself and his Wagner troops look better.
Later he had his press service comment on the first media reports that addressed his alleged demand for an end to the war. The main message of his article was that there must be an “honest fight,” he clarified.
Orthodox Easter: Ukrainian soldiers are released
According to Ukrainian information, a total of 130 soldiers from Russian captivity were released around the Orthodox Easter holiday. The head of the Ukrainian presidential office, Andriy Yermak, captioned it on Telegram on Sunday: “A Great Easter Prisoner Exchange”.
The post was peppered with photos showing dozens Men were seen with the Ukrainian flag. “130 of our people are returning,” wrote Yermak. According to him, the exchange should have taken place in several stages in the past few days. However, there was initially no confirmation from the Russian side.
(With material from the dpa)
