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☆ Russians are reminding troops the enemy is Ukraine amid fears of a Wagner coup attempt against the defense ministry
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-23 | by ( Erin Snodgrass | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Wagner Group leader Yevgeny Prigozhin has prompted fears of an impending coup in Russia. Russian civilians and officials are imploring troops to keep their focus on Ukraine amid the panic. "Everyone who holds a weapon at the line of contact, remember: your enemy is across from you," a message shared repeatedly states. Founder of Wagner private mercenary group Yevgeny Prigozhin. Press service of "Concord"/Handout via REUTERSThe Russian defense ministry, meanwhile, also attempted to refocus attention on the fight in Ukraine in a Friday Telegram post.

Persons: Wagner, Yevgeny Prigozhin, —, Russia's, Putin, Prigozhin, Sergei Shoigu, Staff Valery Gerasimov, Samuel Bendett, Simon Miles, Miles, Sergey Surovikin, Bendett Organizations: Service, Ukraine —, Russian, Staff, Federal Security Service, Center for Naval Analyses, Press, Armed Forces, Russian Federation, [ Armed Forces, Duke University's Sanford School of Public, Soviet Union Locations: Russia, Russian, Ukraine, Moscow, Ukrainian, Bakhmut, gunpoint, Concord, Soviet

☆ Donetsk and Zaporizhzhia: Russian accounts admit Ukrainian forces are making some gains in heavy fighting
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-13 | by ( Tim Lister Josh Pennington Maria Kostenko Helen Regan | Tim Lister | Josh Pennington | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

The channel said Monday that Ukrainian forces were trying to take higher ground to “create conditions for advancing,” and assessed that their aim was to advance toward the Russian-occupied hub of Staromlynivka. CNN cannot independently verify battlefield reports and other accounts paint a gloomier picture for Russian forces around Makarivka. Ukrainian deputy defense minister Maliar said Monday that Makarivka was one of seven villages recaptured by Ukrainian forces in the past week. Meanwhile, one of the most prominent Russian bloggers, Voenkor Kotenok, said late Monday that a senior Russian officer was killed as troops of Russia’s Fifth Army were forced to leave Makarivka. ‘Ultimate goal’In his nightly address Monday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the fighting in the Donetsk-Zaporizhzhia border region is tough but Ukrainian forces are recapturing territory.

Persons: Kryvyi Rih, Oleksandr Vilkul, Hanna Maliar, Kyiv’s, Vladimir Rogov, ” Rogov, Anatolii Stepanov, ”, Rogov, Maliar, Makarivka, “, Neskuchne, Voenkor Kotenok, Voenkor, Sergei Goryachev, Goryachev, WarGonzo, Volodymyr Zelensky, ” Zelensky, Igor Zhovkva, ” Zhovkva Organizations: CNN, Air, Saturday, Russian Telegram, ”, Getty, Makarivka, 127th Division, Donetsk, “, Donetsk ”, Russia’s Fifth Army, Staff, Arms Army, Russian Defense Ministry, United Group of Forces, Ukrainian Ground Forces Locations: Ukraine’s, Donetsk, Russian, Ukrainian, Kryvyi, Moscow, Velyka, Ukraine, Russia, Urozhaine, Staromlynivka, Zaporizhzhia, AFP, Makarivka, ”, Orikhiv, Crimea

☆ Russia put out a video claiming its forces captured prized German-made Leopard tanks and US fighting vehicles in Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-13 | by ( Chris Panella | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Russia released a video claiming it captured German-made Leopard tanks and US fighting vehicles. The video, shared on Twitter by OSINTdefender, showed two captured Leopard 2A6 tanks and a few M2A2 Bradleys. The German-made Leopard tank is a capable third-generation main battle tank that was promised to Ukraine along with British Challenger tanks and American Abrams tanks and arrived in Ukraine in February and March. According to OSINTdefender, it's the first time Russia has released video footage of equipment it's claimed to have captured in battle. The video comes as Ukraine conducts counteroffensive operations in a few different areas of the front lines, including Zaporizhzhia.

Persons: ISW, —, OSINTdefender, American Abrams, it's Organizations: Russian Ministry of Defense, Service, Bradley, Twitter, Leopard, British Challenger, OSINTdefender, Russian Defense Ministry, Reuters, Institute Locations: Russia, Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine, Ukrainian, American

The Bradleys are among almost 3,600 pieces of military equipment Ukraine has lost in the war, according to Oryx. Meanwhile, the website says it has documented the loss of more than 10,600 pieces of Russian military equipment. In a statement in Monday, Moscow claimed it had destroyed multiple Ukrainian armored vehicles in the Zaporizhzhia region. However, Russian anti-tank troops stand in their way, cold-bloodedly turning Western armored vehicles into scrap heaps,” the Russian Ministry of Defense said. While Russian forces continue to hold the city, Ukraine’s forces have concentrated their efforts on areas to the northwest and southwest.

Persons: Jakub Janovsky, Bradley, Bradleys, Rebecca D’Angelo, Artur Widak, ” D’Angelo, James “ Spider ” Marks, ”, Hanna Maliar, Maliar, Mark Hertling, ” Hertling, CNN’s Jim Acosta, “, ” Serhii Cherevatyi, Cherevatyi, Hertling Organizations: CNN, US Bradley, Washington, US, 841st Transportation Battalion, 2nd Battalion, 70th Armored Regiment, 1st Infantry Division, Bradley Fighting, US Army, Russian Ministry of Defense, Deputy, Russia’s Ministry of Defense, Vostok, Russian Defense Ministry, Russian Locations: Ukraine, Russia, Donetsk, Nowa Deba, Poland, Bradleys, Moscow, Zaporizhzhia, Russian, Velyka, Makrivka, Ukrainian, Neskuchne, Urozhaine, Orikhiv, Bakhmut

CNN —The boss of the Russian private military company Wagner says he won’t sign contracts with Russia’s Defense Ministry, rejecting an attempt to bring his force in line. Yevgeny Prigozhin’s comments follow an announcement by the Russian Ministry of Defense Saturday that “volunteer units” and private military groups would be required to sign a contract with the ministry. The order – signed by Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu – said the move would “give the voluntary formations the necessary legal status,” and create “unified approaches” to their work. “The orders and decrees issued by (Defense Minister Sergei) Shoigu apply to employees of the Ministry of Defense and military personnel. PMC ‘Wagner’ will not sign any contracts with Shoigu,” Prigozhin said in a Telegram post.

Persons: Wagner, Yevgeny Prigozhin’s, –, Sergei Shoigu –, ”, Prigozhin –, “, Sergei, Shoigu, PMC ‘ Wagner ’, ” Prigozhin, The Wagner Organizations: CNN, Russia’s Defense Ministry, Russian Ministry of Defense, Russian Defense, Ministry of Defense, PMC, Shoigu, Russian Federation, Russia, Russian Defense Ministry Locations: Ukraine, Russian, Bakhmut

Zelensky shrugged off Putin’s suggestions Ukraine’s armed forces were struggling and sought to apply some psychological pressure of his own. It is important that Russia feels [the counteroffensive], feels that they do not have much time left,” he said. On the battlefield, Russia’s Defense Ministry reported further Ukrainian offensive operations along the frontline to the south and east of Zaporizhzhia. Zelensky tight-lippedCNN is unable to verify Russian defense ministry claims, and the picture is no clearer from the Ukrainian side. Despite this, and the comments by the Ukrainian leader Saturday, there is still no evidence that Ukraine has begun a major advance involving large numbers of forces.

Persons: Volodymyr Zelensky, Vladimir Putin, Zelensky, Putin, ”, Mala Tamkachka, Justin Trudeau, “ Organizations: CNN —, Kyiv Saturday, Russia’s Defense Ministry, The Defense Ministry, Vostok, Russian Defense Ministry, CNN, Officials, Canada’s Locations: Ukraine, Kyiv, Ukrainian, Russia, Zaporizhzhia, Orikhiv, Novopokrovka, Novodanilovka, Tokmak, Velyka Novosilka, Donetsk, Bakhmut

☆ Wagner boss Prigozhin is escalating his feud with the Russian military to stay relevant after Bakhmut, but he risks taking it too far, war experts say
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-07 | by ( Ryan Pickrell | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Wagner founder and financier Yevgeny Prigozhin continues to escalate his feud with the Russian defense ministry. But some prominent voices in Russia's pro-war ultranationalist community are troubled by his antics, ISW observed. But in that same information space, Prigozhin also voiced repeated, profane, and blunt criticisms of the regular Russian military and its leadership. This aspect of his online activities appears to have become more pronounced as Wagner forces come off the line and reposition to rear areas. "Prigozhin is exposing a similar hatred for select individuals within the Russian military command," she said.

Persons: Wagner, Yevgeny Prigozhin, ISW, —, Prigozhin, Russia's ultranationalist, Bakhmut, Stepanenko, Roman Venevitin, Sergei Shoigu, Valery Gerasimov, Igor Girkin, Shoigu, Russian oligarch Organizations: Service, Wagner Group, Russia's, Kremlin, Institute for, Press, REUTERS, 72nd, Motorized Rifle Brigade, Wagner, Russian MoD, RIA, MoD, Washington DC Locations: Bakhmut, Ukraine, Ukrainian, Belgorod Oblast, Russia, Concord, Russian, Soledar

☆ Kyiv warns against loose talk as Russia claims to repel a Ukrainian ‘large-scale’ offensive attack in Donetsk
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-05 | by ( Nathan Hodge Sebastian Shukla Olga Voitovych Sana Noor Haq | Nathan Hodge | Sebastian Shukla | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

Monday’s announcement from the Russian side was no exception: The Russian military claimed in a statement to have killed 250 Ukrainians and destroyed armored vehicles used in the assault, but provided scant evidence. A spokesperson for the Ukraine Armed Forces, Bohdan Senyk, told CNN that Ukraine does “not have information” on a purported “large-scale offensive” in Donetsk. Gerasimov, who is chief of Russia’s General Staff, was put in overall command of Russian military operations in Ukraine early this year. Ukrainian troops are pictured near the town of Avdiivka in Donetsk on May 31, 2023. He claimed that Ukrainian troops have increased the intensity of their shelling, and fired Storm Shadow missiles.

Persons: Bohdan Senyk, “, ”, Valery Gerasimov “, Gerasimov, Wagner, Viacheslav Ratynskyi, Zelensky, Sean Gallup, Zaporizhzhia, Vladimir Rogov, ” Rogov, Muhammed Enes, Hanna Maliar, Volodymyr Zelensky, ” Zelensky, Jake Sullivan –, Joe Biden’s, –, Washington, ” Sullivan, CNN’s Fareed Zakaria Organizations: CNN, Russian Defense Ministry, Russian, Ukraine Armed Forces, Russia’s, Staff, Reuters, Getty, Novosti, Storm, Anadolu Agency, Wall Street, Kyiv Locations: Ukrainian, Donetsk, Ukraine, Russia, Moscow, Avdiivka, Russian, Azov, “

☆ Russia destroyed Ukraine's 'last warship' in Black Sea missile attack, defense ministry said
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-02 | by ( Isobel Van Hagen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The Ukrainian Navy's "last warship" was destroyed, a Russian Defense Ministry spokesman said. The Yuriy Olefirenko was hit with "high-precision weapons" in the port of Odesa, Russia claimed. Russia said the Yuriy Olefirenko was hit on Monday with missiles, which Konashenkov called "high-precision weapons," per Reuters. Russia has rarely targeted the port after signing the UN-backed Black Sea Grain Initiative last year. Whichever side holds the piece of land can control ship traffic between the ports of Kherson and Mykolaiv and the Black Sea, per Forbes.

Persons: Yuriy Olefirenko, —, Igor Konashenkov, Konashenkov, Frederik Mertens, Mertens Organizations: Russian Defense Ministry, Ukrainian Navy, Service, Ukrainian, Russian Defence Ministry, UN, Forbes, Navy, Hague, Strategic Studies, Newsweek Locations: Odesa, Russia, Telegraph, Ukraine, Soviet, Kherson —, Dnipro, Kherson, Mykolaiv, Ukrainian

☆ Russia's Wagner Group chief threatens to pull his mercenary army from fighting in Ukraine if war efforts continue to be 'led by clowns who turn people into meat'
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-01 | by ( Kelsey Vlamis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Yevgeny Prigozhin, the founder of the Wagner Group, continues to criticize the Kremlin. Prigozhin has said his group will not continue fighting in Ukraine if leadership doesn't improve. The Wagner Group, which has taken heavy losses in Ukraine, is in the process of leaving Bakhmut. Wagner, the private army founded by Prigozhin, has experienced heavy losses fighting in Ukraine. Igor Girkin, a former Russian Federal Security Service officer, has said the Wagner Group could pose an active threat to Putin's power and attempt to overthrow him.

Persons: Yevgeny Prigozhin, Prigozhin, —, Vladimir Putin, Wagner, Igor Girkin, Putin Organizations: Wagner Group, Wagner, Service, Russian Wagner Group, Reuters, Wagner Army, The Institute, Kremlin, Russian Defense Ministry, Russian Federal Security Service Locations: Ukraine, Bakhmut, Russian, Russia, Donbas, Moscow

Kyiv, Ukraine CNN —Three people, including a young girl, were killed in Kyiv on Thursday while desperately trying to take cover in a closed bomb shelter amid fresh Russian strikes, in an incident that sparked anger in the Ukrainian capital. This is the largest bomb shelter. “Closed bomb shelters during the war are not just indifference. “I gave a separate order to the heads of the capital’s districts to immediately check all bomb shelters,” he added. The governor of Russia’s Belgorod region, Vyacheslav Gladkov, also denied these latest claims of a border incursion.

Persons: Ihor Klymenko, …, ”, “, Yaroslav, Kateryna Didukh, Serhii Okunev, Klymenko, Oleksii, Roman Pilipey, Vitalii Klitschko, Klitschko, Klitchko, Valentyn Ogirenko, Dmitry Peskov, Vyacheslav Gladlov, Gladkov, Peskov, –, Igor Konashenkov, Vyacheslav Gladkov, ” Gladkov, Putin Organizations: Ukraine CNN, Internal, Ukraine’s National Police, Ukraine Armed Forces, Anadolu Agency, Kyiv’s, Reuters, Grad, Russian Volunteer Corps, Putin, Russia Legion, CNN, Russian Defense Ministry, Federal Security Service, Russian MoD, Russian Federation, for Russia Legion Locations: Kyiv, Ukraine, Ukrainian, Russia, Russian, Desnianskyi, Reuters Belgorod, Russia’s Belgorod, ” Belgorod, Gladkov, Belgorod –, Ukraine’s Kharkiv, –, Belgorod, Putin Russian, Moscow, Novaya Tavolzhanka, Shebekino

☆ Drone attacks in Moscow strikes near the heart of Russia's elite
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-30 | by ( Nathan Hodge | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

On Tuesday morning, a wave of drone strikes hit the Russian capital. An ambulance and firefighting vehicles are parked outside a multi-storey apartment block following a reported drone attack in Moscow, Russia. Instead, it appeared to strike near the heart of Russia’s political and economic elite. A view shows a damaged multi-storey apartment block following a reported drone attack in Moscow, Russia. But it’s clear that the drone strikes are an embarrassment to the Russian military, regardless of how the remotely piloted vehicles were launched.

☆ Wagner boss Prigozhin rips into Russia's military leaders after drone attack on Moscow: 'Let your houses burn'
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-30 | by ( John Haltiwanger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigozhin ripped in Russia's military leaders over drone attacks in Moscow. Meanwhile, the Kremlin downplayed the attacks and said Russia's air defenses worked well. Prigozhin said in a rant directed at the Russian Defense Ministry, per Reuters, apparently infuriated that drones were able to reach the Russian capital. Despite the criticism from Prigozhin, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said that Russia's air defense system "worked well," per Reuters. Russian President Vladimir Putin also said the air defense system "worked in a satisfactory way," and accused Ukraine of engaging in terrorism.

CNN —Russia is blaming Ukraine for launching a drone attack on Moscow early Tuesday which reportedly left two people injured and several buildings damaged, a rare incident in the Russian capital after months of war. At least three residential buildings in Moscow were damaged by drones on Tuesday, Russian state news agency RIA Novosti reported, citing emergency services and residents. Sobyanin added in a subsequent update that investigators had concluded work at the Moscow apartment buildings hit by drones and that evacuated residents would be able to return to their homes. Ukraine has denied direct involvement with Tuesday’s drone attack on Moscow. A view shows a damaged multi-storey apartment block following a reported drone attack in Moscow on Tuesday.

The Russian Defense Ministry said Ukraine was behind what it described as a “terrorist attack” and that all eight were intercepted. Several buildings in Moscow were damaged, and some residents were evacuated early Tuesday, the city’s mayor said. At least two of the drones crashed into residential towers, Russian state media reported, citing state emergency services. It was the 17th assault on the city this month, a spate of attacks that has taken a toll on residents. On Monday, Kyiv was targeted with 11 ballistic missiles shortly after 11 a.m.

CNN —Russia hit Kyiv with an array of missile fire on Monday in a surprise daytime attack, hours after an overnight barrage of the Ukrainian capital and across the country. Kyiv’s armed forced said it downed 11 Iskander missiles launched by Russia in the daytime raid. Ukrainian Police officers inspect a fragment a rocket after a Russian attack in Kyiv on Monday. Evgeniy Maloletka/APThe Khmelnytskyi regional military administration said Russia had attacked a military facility in the western Ukrainian city, damaging five aircraft. The Russian Defense Ministry said later that its forces hit Ukrainian airfields, destroying all targets.

☆ Former Russian commander in Ukraine says Putin could be overthrown by the Wagner mercenary army
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-29 | by ( Riddhi Kanetkar | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

A former Federal Security Service officer said Putin could be overthrown by Wagner. The Wagner Army is Putin's private military army, largely made up of mercenaries. The Army chief, Yevgeny Prigozhin, could pose an active threat to Putin, said the war analyst. Last week he said that Ukraine has gained more troops and more weapons since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The Wagner founder added to his feud with Russia's public leaders when he claimed that the Ukraine war had backfired, according to The Hill.

☆ Russian warship protecting pipelines attacked by 3 Ukrainian marine drones in the Black Sea, Russian officials say
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-25 | by ( Isobel Van Hagen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Ukraine attacked the Ivan Khurs with three uncrewed speedboats, Russian officials said. The raid on the Russian warship in the Black Sea failed to cause any damage, they claimed. Footage posted by Russian officials shows the Russian ship firing shots, striking and destroying one of the uncrewed boats. The Ivan Khurs is one of Russia's most modern ships in the Black Sea fleet and has a crew of 120. Last year, Ukrainian officials accused Russia of purposefully slowing grain shipments in the area, the New York Times reported.

☆ Wagner boss Prigozhin says Putin's plan to 'demilitarize' Ukraine has been a bust as Ukraine now has one of the 'strongest' armies
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-24 | by ( Jake Epstein | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

"The Ukrainians are one of the strongest armies today," Yevgeny Prigozhin said in an interview. It turns out that on the contrary, we have militarized Ukraine," Prigozhin said in a video interview now circulating around social media. The nod to demilitarization refers to one of Russian President Vladimir Putin's key ambitions in the unprovoked assault on Ukraine in February 2022. Praising his adversary while calling attention to Russia's failures, Prigozhin said that "the Ukrainians are one of the strongest armies today." Kyiv's troops have used these systems to inflict devastating casualties on both Wagner and Russia's regular military.

☆ Ukraine war live updates: Ukraine refuses to accept loss of Bakhmut; Wagner mercenary boss downplays army's role in 'capture'
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-22 | by ( Holly Ellyatt | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

A Ukrainian soldier of the 28th Brigade's Aerial Reconnaissance Regiment preparing equipment on a mission to the front south of Bakhmut, Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine, on May 17, 2023. Ukraine is refusing to concede defeat in the largely ruined eastern town of Bakhmut after Russian mercenary forces claimed they were now fully in control of the town after months of fighting. Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Sunday that "Russia did not occupy Bakhmut" as he attended a news conference at the Group of Seven summit in Japan, rebuffing claims by Russia's mercenary Wagner Group leader Yevgeny Prigozhin that his forces had fully captured the town in the Donetsk region on Saturday. The head of Ukraine's ground forces Colonel-General Oleksandr Syrskyi said Sunday that his forces still controlled parts of Bakhmut and that they were not ready to give up. Meanwhile, Prigozhin downplayed the contribution of the regular Russian army in the claimed capture of the town, saying his fighters had been let down by the Russian Defense Ministry leadership.

☆ Kyiv breathes sigh of relief after air defenses shoot down barrage of Russian rockets
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-16 | by ( Josh Pennington Tim Lister Kostan Nechyporenko Olga Voitovych Ivana Kottasová Yulia Kesaieva | Josh Pennington | Tim Lister | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

Most Kyiv residents would have had no way of knowing for sure that the sudden, terrifying loud bangs were the Ukrainian air defense systems taking down Russian missiles, rather than rockets hitting their city. Yulia Kesaieva/CNN“My wife counted over 30 explosions and we saw dozens of launches by the Ukrainian air defense from our balcony. Our air defense are real heroes. I think it’s both – the experience and the new air defense systems we got,” he told CNN. Russian officials including President Vladimir Putin have repeatedly talked up the hypersonic Kinzhal missiles for their ability to evade Ukraine’ original air defense systems.

☆ As Ukrainian Attack Looms, Putin Faces Setbacks and Disunity in Russian Forces
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-16 | by ( Paul Sonne | Anton Troianovski | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Russian military aircraft are crashing before they even reach Ukrainian airspace. A Russian mercenary boss is releasing one profanity-laced tirade after another, claiming that corrupt Russian generals who “all reek of expensive perfume” are sending soldiers to their deaths. These would seem to be bad weeks for President Vladimir V. Putin, a time when the problems that have plagued his 15-month war since its beginning are only worsening: stretched resources, disorganized defenses and disunity in the ranks. Those problems are now threatening to derail what just weeks ago had seemed finally to be a rare military success in Russia’s grasp: victory in the long-running, bloody battle for the eastern Ukrainian city of Bakhmut. Russian forces, while still fighting fiercely within the city limits, have retreated from positions on the edges of Bakhmut and according to the Russian Defense Ministry lost two colonels to combat there.

CNN —Russia’s air force may have just suffered one of its worst days since the Ukraine war began. Some analysts believe Ukrainian air defenses may have been pushed forward as the Russian air force uses more “glide munitions” that can fire at targets from distance. They are using these bombs “from a distance that is unreachable for Ukrainian air defense,” he said. Mykola Oleshchuk, the commander of the Ukrainian Air Force, has also suggested that the nature of the threat has changed. That may be as of much concern in Russia as the loss of four aircraft over Russian territory

CNN —Two senior Russian military officers have been killed in eastern Ukraine, the Russian Defense Ministry said Sunday, the latest high-profile losses for Moscow in a grinding war with its western neighbor. The ministry said the two officers – Col. Vyacheslav Makarov and Col. Yevgeny Brovko – were in killed in action while leading Russian troops in the Donetsk region. “The commander of the 4th motorized rifle brigade, Colonel Vyacheslav Makarov, being at the forefront, personally led the battle,” a Russian Defense Ministry briefing read. The Donetsk region of Ukraine includes the city of Bakhmut, which has seen some of the fiercest and most relentless fighting of the war. The Russian Defense Ministry said Ukraine has made “massive attempts to break through the defense of our troops to the north and south of Artemovsk,” referring to Bakhmut by its Russian name.

☆ Wagner boss Prigozhin is going off the rails in Ukraine, and Putin may not have much choice but to let him, war expert says
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-13 | by ( Ryan Pickrell | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +12 min

Though he strikes hardest at the defense ministry, he has seemingly aimed his frustrations at Putin as well. During the intense fighting in Bakhmut, where the mercenaries have suffered tremendous losses, simmering tensions between the Russian defense ministry and the Wagner boss have boiled over. With the replacement of Gen. Sergei Surovikin, an infamous Russian leader pushed by ultranationalists like Prigozhin, in January, the Russian defense ministry retook control. The situation got so bad for Wagner at one point that expert observers speculated that the Russian military was purposefully decimating the group. Prigozhin said he was threatened with treason over his assertions that Wagner forces would pull out of Bakhmut.

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