Russian propaganda launches discrediting campaign against Wagner mercenaries
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The Russian propaganda Pervy Kanal (Channel 1) reported on the inefficiency of the Wagner Private Military Company (PMC) in comparison with the soldiers of the Russian Federation.
Source: Meduza, a Latvian-based Russian media outlet; Pervy Kanal (Channel 1)
Details: In the story, the Russians compare the battles for Mariupol and Bakhmut.
Russians call the first city "one of the most important centres of Ukrainian metallurgy", from which "for eight years they purposefully made a powerful fortified area with Azovstal, which was considered impregnable, and an extremely motivated Azov Battalion."
It is noted that the alleged population of the city was 425,000.
Propagandists say that Mariupol was occupied by the troops of the Russian Defenсe Ministry and the National Guard of Russia for 71 days.
After that, the story talks about Bakhmut, allegedly "not the most important city from the point of view of the front", with a population of 72,000 people.
Propaganda emphasises that the Wagner mercenaries destroyed and captured the city for over 7.5 months.
The media recalled that on 21 May, when Yevgeny Prigozhin, the head of the Wagner mercenaries, announced the capture of Bakhmut, the same Pervy Kanal rejoiced at "events of historical scale".
— snatch (@sna7c4) July 1, 2023
Background:
On the evening of 23 June, Wagner Group leader Yevgeny Prigozhin claimed that the regular Russian army had launched a missile strike on the Wagner mercenaries’ rear camps. He therefore deployed 25,000 of his mercenaries "to restore justice".
Prigozhin claimed that his forces had taken control of military facilities in Rostov-on-Don, including the air base, and were heading "to Moscow" and that his soldiers had shot down at least three Russian helicopters. Wagner mercenaries have also seized military facilities in the Russian city of Voronezh.
In an emergency address on 24 June, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that Russia was "fighting for survival" and that attempts were being made to "organise a rebellion" in the country.
The Russian Presidential Administration (AP) feared that within a few hours, Evgeny Prigozhin's Wagnerians could be near Moscow and fighting would break out near the capital. According to Ukrainian intelligence, Putin urgently left Moscow for Valdai. A convoy of the Wagner Group was spotted 400 km from Moscow.
On Saturday evening, after a conversation with Alexander Lukashenko, the self-proclaimed president of Belarus, Prigozhin announced that his mercenaries were turning their convoys around and going back to set up field camps. Later, it was reported that the criminal case against Prigozhin was to be closed and he would "go to Belarus".
Vladimir Putin, President of the Russian Federation, acknowledged the deaths of Russian pilots during the rebellion by the mercenaries of the Wagner Group, but he did not make any high-profile statements on this matter. On the contrary, he met with the heads of law enforcement agencies and thanked them for "suppressing" the rebellion of Wagner Group mercenaries and also thanked the Wagners fighters themselves for "not resorting to fratricidal bloodshed".
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