President Vladimir Putin: Wagner does not exist

While attending a technology fair in Moscow, Mr Putin was asked whether Wagner would continue to operate as a fighting force. "The Wagner group does not exist," the Kremlin chief told Kommersant. "We have no law on private military companies. So Wagner simply does not exist."

"This group exists, but legally it does not. That is a separate issue, related to legalization, that needs to be resolved by the State Duma (the lower house of the Russian parliament) and the government . This is a complicated question," Putin said.

Russian President Vladimir Putin visits a quantum technology exhibition in Moscow, Russia on July 13. Photo: Reuters

According to RT, the Russian government has long maintained this view when asked about Wagner, nominally headed by businessman Yevgeny Prigozhin.

Wagner's actual existence was only acknowledged by the Russian military when the group entered the fighting in Donbass last year, specifically in Popasnaya and Artyomovsk, also known as Bakhmut. These are regions in Ukraine.

Earlier this week, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed that Mr Putin had met with 35 members of Wagner on June 29, days after the group took part in a brief mutiny.

“At the meeting, I gave an assessment of what they did on the battlefield and what they did on June 24. Third, I showed them possible scenarios of how they could continue to serve, including fighting. That’s all,” Putin said.

President Putin said he had asked the Wagners gathered at the Kremlin to continue their military service under the commander they had served under for the past 16 months, known by the nickname “Greyhair”. While many of them nodded, Mr Prigozhin spoke on their behalf and said they disagreed.

Previously, under the terms of the deal after the June 24 coup, Wagner would be re-enlisted into the Russian armed forces while Mr Prigozhin would move to Belarus and the criminal case against him for armed rebellion would be dropped.

Source: https://nld.com.vn/thoi-su-quoc-te/tong-thong-vladimir-putin-wagner-khong-ton-tai-20230714070357927.htm