Prigozhin now says he’s been promised "as much ammunition as it takes"

Wagner Group leader Yevgeny Prigozhin says he has received a combat instruction – presumably from the Russian Ministry of Defence – saying that his soldiers will receive ammunition and weapons.

Source: Prigozhin’s press service 

Quote: "They are promising to give us as much ammunition and weapons as we need to continue further operations.

They swear to us that everything we need will be supplied to our flank so that we are not cut off by the enemy.

They say that we can act in Artemivsk [Bakhmut – ed.] as we see fit.

And they are giving us [Sergei] Surovikin [the former commander of Russian forces in Ukraine – ed.] as a person who will make all decisions within the combat operations of the Wagner Group in cooperation with the Ministry of Defence."

Background:

• On 5 May, Yevgeny Prigozhin, the founder of the Wagner private military company, wrote a letter to the Russian Defence Ministry stating that he would be withdrawing his mercenaries from Bakhmut after 10 May.
• He claimed that the reason for the move was that the Ministry of Defence did not give his fighters enough ammunition, and he did not want his people to be "doomed to a senseless death" because of this.
• The Armed Forces of Ukraine are sceptical about the claim made by Prigozhin.
• Later, Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov offered his assistance with the occupation of Bakhmut. 
• Prigozhin announced that he would supposedly hand over the positions of his fighters in Bakhmut to Kadyrov's soldiers.

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