International- The rift between the Wagner Group and Russia's regular military continues to grow over Ukraine.
- Yevgeny Prigozhin, the group's leader, shared a graphic photo of dead mercenaries this week.
Russian forces continue to face severe losses on the battlefield in Ukraine, and the rift between the notorious Wagner Group mercenary organization and Moscow's regular military continues to widen.
Yevgeny Prigozhin, who founded the Kremlin-linked Wagner Group, shared a graphic photograph of dead Russian mercenaries earlier this week and criticized the country's military leadership for getting them killed.
Prigozhin shared the gruesome image, which shows dozens of corpses placed in multiple rows on the ground, to his Telegram channel on Tuesday.
"Who is responsible for their deaths?" Prigozhin asked rhetorically in a corresponding interview, according to a report from the Latvia-based news outlet Meduza. The Wagner boss said that the blame lies with "those who had to make a decision about supplying us with sufficient ammunition," specifically Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu and Chief of General Staff Valery Gerasimov.
Russian President Vladimir Putin tasked Gerasimov in January with overseeing his struggling war in Ukraine, replacing Gen. Sergei Surovikin after just a few months. Colin H. Kahl, a senior US official and the under secretary of defense for policy, said at the time that the rotation of Russian generals in Ukraine is "kind of like a reality TV show."
Prigozhin's comments about responsibility for the deaths of Russian mercenaries in battle came shortly after he accused Russia's military leadership of withholding ammunition and other supplies from Wagner fighters. Russia's defense ministry denied the claims and said any statements about munitions shortages are "absolutely untrue," Russian state media TASS reported.
"Attempts to drive a wedge in the tight mechanism of cooperation and support between the units of the Russian force are counterproductive and are playing into the hands of the enemy," Russia's defense ministry said, according to TASS.
This week's public spat between the Wagner Group and Russia's regular military is the latest display of tension between the two sides, which have fought alongside each other on the battlefields in eastern Ukraine's Donbas region. Prigozhin has frequently criticized Moscow over its war efforts, including blasting the Kremlin for its inability to obtain any notable achievements in Ukraine.
"We are seeing indications, including in intelligence, that tensions between Wagner and the Russian Ministry of Defense are increasing," National Security Council Spokesperson John Kirby said at a briefing last month. "Wagner is becoming a rival power center to the Russian military and other Russian ministries."
Meanwhile, Wagner has appeared at times to be the only Russian force making any gains in Ukraine, even if they are quite limited. Western intelligence has shared that the mercenary organization plays an important role in Moscow's military campaign, especially around the war-torn eastern city of Bakhmut, where intense fighting has raged for months.
But the Wagner Group has suffered heavy losses on the battlefield. US officials estimate that the organization has suffered over 30,000 causalities, including 9,000 killed in action. And Britain's defense ministry said last week that around half of the prisoners recruited to fight for Wagner are either dead or wounded.