The head of the Ukrainian military intelligence (GUR), Kirilo Budanovaffirmed this Monday that there is no information that the mercenaries of the Russian Wagner group in Belarus are going to attack Ukraine, Poland or other border countries.
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“From the information we have now, there is no danger that the Wagners who are in Belarus will attack Ukraine or any other country,” Budanov said when asked by EFE about the possibility, suggested by Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, that Wagner’s mercenaries intend to attack Poland or Lithuania from Belarus.
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Budanov added that the priority of Wagner’s mercenaries is on the African continent. “They are being activated to influence Africa,” he explained.
Despite this, warned the head of the GUR, “the Russians will use” the presence of mercenaries from the Wagner group in Belarus “to create tension”.
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It is believed that thousands of mercenaries from the Wagner group, including its leader, Evgueni Prigozhin, have settled in Belarus in recent days after their failed rebellion against the command of the Russian army on June 23.
They are being activated to influence Africa.
Russian President Vladimir Putin would have offered them immunity in exchange for their voluntary exile in Belaruswhere they have been welcomed by Lukashenko.
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In addition to Ukraine, Belarus borders Poland, Lithuania and Latvia, three EU countries that have been known for their strong support for Kiev, raising fears that Russian mercenaries could attack or orchestrate provocations against these states.
Before deploying a large part of its troops in the theaters of operations in eastern Ukraine, the Wagner group gained influence by offering security services to various governments in Africa, where it is a key pillar of Russian influence.
Will they recruit new mercenaries?
The head of the Russian mercenary group Wagner, Yevgueni Prigozhin, confirmed on Monday that the paramilitary company has stopped recruiting new fighters by not fighting anymore in Ukraine.
“At the moment, we don’t have a staff shortage and we don’t plan to recruit,” Prigozhin said in an audio broadcast on Telegram channels associated with Wagner.
He added that right now the date of the restart of the recruitment of the group is unknown, which during the fighting in Ukraine was supplied to a large extent by convicts and ex-convicts, of whom some 20,000 would have died.
However, he assured that “when the Homeland requires it,” the wagnerites, who until recently were the main Russian assault force in Ukraine, will once again create an “additional unit” to defend national interests.
Meanwhile, the group will continue its activities in Africa and Belarus, the country where it moved after the failed armed rebellion against the Kremlin last June.
The Gayun research project previously confirmed the presence of more than 3,500 Wagner militiamen in Belarus.
EFE
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