Russian military command seeks to reduce reliance on Wagner Group

The Institute for the Study of War (ISW) has reported that the Wagner Group (Private Military Company, PMC) is limiting recruitment from prisons as it loses its relevance on the front in Ukraine. 

Source: ISW report from 9 February 2023

Details: Wagner Group financier Yevgeny Prigozhin announced on 9 February that the Wagner Group has entirely stopped recruiting convicts. Prigozhin claimed that Wagner's recruitment of prison inmates has "completely stopped" and that "all obligations are being fulfilled" for those currently under Wagner's employ.

The ISW believes that the Wagner Group will likely continue to recruit from prisons, albeit in a much more limited capacity.

As the ISW has previously noted, Wagner's recruitment of convicts has slowed over the last few months, an assessment confirmed by statistics by the Federal Penitentiary Service that show that decreases in the Russian prison population stabilised between November 2022 and January 2023.

"This phenomenon is consistent with the overall trend of conventional Russian troops slowly replacing the Wagner Group around Bakhmut, indicating that Russian military command may be shifting away from its reliance on Wagner and therefore on using prisoners as cannon fodder," the ISW concluded.

Key takeaways from the ISW report:

• Wagner Group financier Yevgeny Prigozhin announced that the Wagner Group has entirely stopped recruiting prisoners.
• The Kremlin continues to pursue measures to gradually prepare Russia’s defence industrial base for a protracted war in Ukraine.
• A prominent Wagner-linked Russian military blogger called for the dismissal of Russian Defence Minister Sergey Shoigu over a Russian military uniform procurement scandal.
• The Kremlin continues to illustrate that it is unwilling to curb divisive rhetoric from ultranationalist pro-war figures.
• Russian forces continued offensive operations along the Svatove-Kreminna axis.
• Russian forces conducted limited ground attacks in western Donetsk Oblast and the Avdiivka–Donetsk City area and continued offensive operations around Bakhmut.
• Russian forces conducted a limited ground attack in Zaporizhzhia Oblast.
• Russian sources claimed that the Russian military integrated a Donetsk People’s Republic (DNR) volunteer formation into the Russian Armed Forces.
• Russian sources claimed that Russian authorities detained a Ukrainian sabotage and reconnaissance group attempting to assassinate Russian occupation officials.

Journalists fight on their own frontline. Support Ukrainska Pravda or become our patron!