Wagner Boss Rejects WaPo Report As ‘Smear Campaign’ Planted By Political Enemies

The Washington Post has issued a new report which was immediately met with incredulity and intense skepticism among many given the enormity of the claims, alleging that Russia’s Wagner mercenary group chief Yevgeny Prigozhin offered to give the Ukrainians information on Russian troop positions. 

“In late January, with his mercenary forces dying by the thousands in a fight for the ruined city of Bakhmut, Wagner Group owner Yevgeniy Prigozhin made Ukraine an extraordinary offer,” the WaPo report begins. “Prigozhin said that if Ukraine’s commanders withdrew their soldiers from the area around Bakhmut, he would give Kyiv information on Russian troop positions, which Ukraine could use to attack them.”

The report described further based on the alleged US intelligence: “Prigozhin conveyed the proposal to his contacts in Ukraine’s military intelligence directorate, with whom he has maintained secret communications during the course of the war, according to previously unreported U.S. intelligence documents leaked on the group-chat platform Discord.”

While the intensifying spat between Wagner and the regular chain of command has long been out in full view, and has likely been somewhat of an embarrassment for the defense ministry and the Kremlin, the Washington Post reporting is describing outright treason.

But given the Post is one of the most visible US newspapers in the world, Prigozhin was forced to address it. According to his words translated by Moscow Times/AFP: 

The founder of Russia’s Wagner mercenary group Yevgeny Prigozhin called reports that he offered information on Russian troop positions to Ukraine “laughable” and a result of a possible smear campaign.

…Prigozhin laughed off The Washington Post’s report in an audio message posted on Telegram. 

“Reading this is of course nice. It means I am not only fighting for Russia but Zelensky is also fulfilling my orders,” Prigozhin said.

“This is laughable.”

He said “people from Rublyovka” — a luxurious Moscow suburb home to the Russian elite — could be behind the allegations.

“Of course they will pour as much s*** on me as they can,” he said.

While firmly rejecting the claims, it’s interesting that Prigozhin was immediately suspicious of his own political enemies inside Russia as being behind planting the “intelligence”.

We’re now on D+5 of the Ukrainian counteroffensive, which was predictably launched into the Bakhmut flanks after Prigozhin spent months losing his mind on social media.

The modest gains shown have cost multiple AFU brigades and thousands of casualties to achieve. pic.twitter.com/Z4xf3O8UPO

— Armchair Warlord (@ArmchairW) May 14, 2023

Another scenario could be that US intelligence itself knows this is an optimal time to sow further suspicion, confusion, and division in Russian military ranks at a moment the fate of Bakhmut hangs in the balance. By feeding US news outlets such allegations centering on Prigozhin, US intelligence can easily at this point ratchet the drama and pressure between the Russian defense ministry and Wagner.

The Kremlin in its Monday daily press briefing said it’s initial take is that it “looks fake” when asked about the Washington Post report.