While the Wagner Group has played a vital role in supporting the Russian army during its war in Ukraine, it has also allegedly made 100 Russian soldiers disappear after they refused to sign contracts with the mercenary group.
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The Wagner Group is a private military company lead by Yevgeny Prigozhin. While initially a close ally of Vladimir Putin, there have been reports in recent months of a growing feud between Prigozhin and the Russian President. As Prigozhin has garnered acclaim in Russia for the group's successes on the battlefield, his increasing power is apparently seen as a threat by Putin. Indeed, it is reported that Prigozhin could be a potential contender for Russia's 2024 presidential elections.
Wagner Group 'threatened' soldiers 'with violence'
The missing soldiers were reported in an assessment released by the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) on Wednesday 12 April. The assessment read:
Russian sources reported that Russian forces transferred the 100 personnel to an unspecified training ground in Luhansk Oblast after the Wagner Group threatened them with violence for refusing to sign contracts on April 7.
Geolocated footage published on April 11 shows former South Ossetia president Lieutenant General Anatoly Bibilov threatening the mobilized personnel in Kadiivka, Luhansk Oblast over claims about desertion and Wagner personnel reportedly locking them in a repair plant before escorting them to the unspecified training ground.
Read more ⋙ Russian army suffering from highest estimated number of casualties due to this unusual reason
Dozens of Russian draftees said they were sold as cattle to Wagner.
— Yasmina (@yasminalombaert) April 12, 2023
They were locked in a factory and forced to sign contracts with the Wagner Group at gunpoint, Astra reported.
About 170 draftees were bussed from Russia to the Luhansk region in the middle of the night last… pic.twitter.com/XeXtI1CtmQ
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Russian soldiers 'unaccounted for'
The assessment added:
A Russian source reported that the mobilized service members have been unaccounted for since April 7.
According to Astra Press' Telegram channel, which is a publication for independent Russian journalists, one of the Russian soldiers was reportedly able to speak to his family before disappearing. Their phone conversation was recorded by his relative. When translated into English, he said:
They are already putting us under the automatic weapons, that's it, the pressure has started here. Representatives of the Wagner PMC arrived with guns, about 30 of them. Now (we) will just twist, they want to take us to some firing range, they began to apply pressure.
We ask: 'Where are our military personnel?!' and they say: 'What the f**k do you need them for?' We have been depersonalized, there are no military IDs, they brought people with weapons, and I understand they will take away our phones and we will not be able to communicate.
Sources used:
Newsweek: 'Wagner Group Accused of Making Russian Soldiers Disappear'
Institute for the Study of War: 'Russian Offensive Campaign Assessment, April 12, 2023'
