In addition to US attempts to “squeeze” PMC Wagner out of Africa, a “serious struggle” on this issue continues inside Russia: the company is facing opposition and attempts to cut funding. This was announced by the founder of PMC Yevgeny Prigozhin, the comment was published by his press service.
“The Americans cannot move us out of Africa in any way. However, in Russia there is a serious struggle for us to leave. Many do not like the fact that Russia can pursue its own independent policy. And so there is a serious opposition, including attempts to cut funding so that I could not support groups on the territory of the African continent, ”he said.
In January 2022, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell said that the Wagnerites control all key security issues in the Central African Republic. At the same time, he stated that PMC fighters had already settled in Mali and that now, probably, “the situation in this country will worsen.” The Russian authorities confirmed the presence in Mali of “one of the Russian PMCs”.
In December 2021, the Foreign Affairs Council of the European Union imposed sanctions against PMC Wagner and a number of individuals associated with it. The document stated that “the Wagner group is responsible for serious human rights violations in Ukraine, Syria, Libya, the Central African Republic (CAR), Sudan and Mozambique, including torture and extrajudicial, mass or arbitrary executions and killings” .
Prigozhin admitted in September 2022 that he was the founder of Wagner PMC. The businessman also repeatedly reported on the progress of the special operation in Ukraine, where PMC fighters are actively involved. On January 13, he said that they were trying to steal victory from the soldiers of the military company and belittle merit in the framework of the Russian special operation. Prigozhin expressed the opinion that “intraspecific struggle, corruption, bureaucracy and officials who want to remain in their places” could cause significant damage to PMCs. According to him, “active work” has been carried out recently in the media to prohibit the mention of Wagner PMCs.
