News Feed

Intelligence chief: Wagner Group will no longer fight in Ukraine

2 min read
Intelligence chief: Wagner Group will no longer fight in Ukraine
Head of the President's Office Andriy Yermak (R), Chief of the Defense Intelligence Major-General Kyrylo Budanov (C), and Head of the Security Service Vasyl Maliuk (L) attend a press briefing on the release of Ukrainian defenders from Russian captivity in Kyiv on Sept. 22, 2022. (Photo by Gian Marco Benedetto/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

Head of military intelligence (HUR), Kyrylo Budanov, told Ukrainska Pravda on June 29 that Wagner Group mercenaries will no longer fight on the territory of Ukraine.

"The private military company (PMC) Wagner will no longer take part in hostilities on the territory of Ukraine. And this is the most effective unit of the Russian Federation that knew how to achieve success at any cost," Budanov said.

The intelligence chief noted that some Wagner contractors are still stationed in the south of Ukraine, as well as at their base in eastern Luhansk Oblast, set up in 2014, but are not taking part in hostilities.

Budanov added that the Wagner rebellion destroyed the "myth of unwavering Russian regime."

The Wagner Group's founder, Yevgeny Prigozhin, launched an armed rebellion against the Russian government on June 23. His mercenaries occupied the city of Rostov and marched to within 200 kilometers of Moscow, only to abruptly end the insurrection less than 24 hours later, on June 24.

After a deal between the Kremlin and Prigozhin, allegedly brokered by Belarus' dictator Aleksander Lukashenko, Russian officials said that the Wagner founder and his contract soldiers would be allowed to leave for Belarus. Russian dictator Vladimir Putin said that the mercenaries would also have an option of signing a contract with the Russian Defense Ministry.

Media: Russian general Surovikin arrested over Wagner rebellion
Russian General Sergei Surovikin has been arrested, the Moscow Times wrote on June 28, citing its sources in Russia’s Defense Ministry.
Article image
Avatar
Martin Fornusek

Senior News Editor

Martin Fornusek is a news editor at the Kyiv Independent. He has previously worked as a news content editor at the media company Newsmatics and is a contributor to Euromaidan Press. He was also volunteering as an editor and translator at the Czech-language version of Ukraïner. Martin studied at Masaryk University in Brno, Czechia, holding a bachelor's degree in security studies and history and a master's degree in conflict and democracy studies.

Read more
News Feed
Show More