Putin confirms that Wagner PMC belonged to Russian army

Ukrainian Prosecutor General Andriy Kostin made the statement in a comment to Reuters.

Kostin believes that the Kremlin leader's comment about spending almost USD 2 billion on Wagner PMC from the state budget was direct evidence that they are not only de facto, but probably illegally, also part of the Russian army.

At the same time, the employment of mercenaries in armed conflicts is prohibited by the Geneva Conventions.

According to the Prosecutor General, among the more than 93,000 cases of potential war crimes investigated by the Office, there were many atrocities committed by Wagner forces.

Their atrocities are “among the most severe crimes against our civilians and our prisoners of war," the Prosecutor General said, adding that PMCs pose a threat not only to Ukraine, but also to peace and security in many countries, including Latin America, Africa and the Middle East.

Kostin called on allies, including the US and Britain, to recognize Wagner PMC as a terrorist organization so that it can be brought to justice.

"Prigozhin is already a suspect in criminal proceedings in Ukraine, but the main thing is to stop the activity of such groups," he said.

Will Wagner PMC mercenaries fight in Ukraine?

The US State Department spokesperson has no comment on the veracity of reports that Wagner mercenaries will no longer fight in Ukraine after Prigozhin's mutiny in Russia, claimed Ukrainian intelligence earlier.

"I would say that we have seen Wagner forces commit atrocities in Ukraine. We saw them attacking civilians and civilian infrastructure. So if that were true, we would obviously welcome it. But I think as always with statements coming out of Russia, coming out of Wagner, you have to take them with a grain of salt. We've seen cases where they've said one thing and done another, so I think I'll wait to see - before I make any assessment of whether it's true or not, I'll wait to see the facts and how they develop," he said.

Prigozhin's mutiny in Russia

On June 23, Russian troops allegedly launched a missile attack on a Wagner PMC base. Wagner leader Yevgeny Prigozhin announced a "march of justice" and said that 25,000 mercenaries were marching on Moscow. The militants entered several regions and were moving toward the Russian capital. In Moscow itself, defensive positions were established, trenches were dug, and all security forces were mobilized.

However, on the evening of June 24, the press service of the self-proclaimed President of Belarus, Alexander Lukashenko, released a statement in which the head of the Wagner PMC stated that he was ready to stop the advance of his mercenaries' military convoys, which were already approaching Moscow, and to reach an agreement with the Kremlin. Prigozhin allegedly agreed on this during a conversation with Lukashenko.

Instead, Prigozhin announced that the Wagner group had stopped their advance and returned to their field camps before reaching 200 km from Moscow. Russian leader Vladimir Putin promised that Prigozhin would be able to go to Belarus, and Russia would close the criminal case against him.

On June 26, Putin gave a speech in which he offered the Wagner PMC fighters three options for future actions: join the Russian Defense Forces, go to Belarus with other PMC members, or return to their families.

On June 27, the Federal Security Service of Russia announced that it dropped the criminal case related to the armed plot, in which Wagner PMC leader Yevgeny Prigozhin was involved.

On the same day, the self-proclaimed President of Belarus confirmed the arrival of Yevgeny Prigozhin in the country. According to him, the Wagner mercenaries who arrived with him would not guard the Russian tactical nuclear weapons stationed there.

Satellite images that surfaced on June 29 revealed the construction of a tent camp near Asipovichy, Mogilev region, Belarus. Radio Liberty speculated that this camp might be intended for accommodating Wagner Group personnel.

Wagner PMC has temporarily halted the operations of its regional recruitment centers in Russia as a result of its relocation to Belarus.

Read more about the Wagner mutiny here.