On Friday, US National Security Council Spokesperson John Kirby announced that the Department of Treasury will designate Russia’s private military company, the Wagner Group, as a “transnational criminal organisation” and impose additional sanctions against the group and “its support network across multiple continents.”
“Our message to any company that is considering providing support to Wagner is simply this: Wagner is a criminal organisation that is committing widespread atrocities and human rights abuses, and we will work relentlessly to identify, disrupt, expose, and target those who are assisting Wagner,” Kirby stated.
The US has designated the Wagner Group as a significant Transnational Criminal Organization
— Samuel Ramani (@SamRamani2) January 21, 2023
Short of a terrorism designation but it imposes extremely stringent sanctions on Yevgeny Prigozhin's network
Wagner’s Role in Ukraine War
Kirby mentioned that the organisation has made “incremental progress” in Russia’s battle in Bakhmut and Soledar in eastern Ukraine. Nevertheless, Washington considers it to be an ongoing battle, thus Kirby asserted that “even if [the Wagner Group] are successful in Bakhmut or Soledar, it’s not going to strategically change the dynamics on the battlefield.”
He further noted that both are mining towns — gypsum in Bakhmut and salt in Soledar — which is why Wagner Group chief Yevgeny Prigozhin is “so adamant on just literally throwing bodies into a meat grinder to get these two towns.”
The #UK should do the same.
— Bob Seely MP (@IoWBobSeely) January 22, 2023
I’ll be working to designate #Wagner as a terrorist group. There are 50k Wagner mercenaries at war in #Ukraine, most of them fresh out of prison.https://t.co/ieXDicAa33
“It’s very much in keeping with his modus operandi in places like Africa, where he’s going after mining rights and mining capabilities,” Kirby said, adding that it has led to “consternation with the Russian Defence Ministry.”
“Prigozhin is trying to advance his own interests in Ukraine, and Wagner is making military decisions based largely on what they will generate for Prigozhin, in terms of positive publicity,” he stressed.
Wagner’s Increasing Tensions with the Russian Defence Ministry
Kirby said that with Russian President Vladimir Putin increasingly turning to Wagner Group for military support in the Ukraine war, “tensions between Wagner and the Russian Ministry of Defence are increasing.”
WASHINGTON (AP) — US toughening sanctions on Wagner Group, highlights 'tensions' between private military force and Russian military.
— darlene superville (@dsupervilleap) January 20, 2023
“Wagner is becoming a rival power center to the Russian military and other Russian ministries,” he remarked, adding that Prigozhin has criticised Russian officials and commanders for “their performance on the battlefield.”
Moreover, he revealed that the Russian Defence Ministry “has reservations about Wagner’s recruitment methods.” According to Kirby, Wagner has 50,000 troops fighting in Ukraine, comprising 10,000 contractors and 40,000 convicts, with most casualties being prisoners.
Prigozhin’s Response
Following the announcement of additional sanctions, Prigozhin wrote in a letter on Telegram, “Dear Mr Kirby, Could you please clarify what crime was committed by PMC Wagner?”
The head of Wagner Group Yevgeny Prigozhin on US designation of Wagner as a significant transnational criminal organization: Finally, now PMC Wagner and the Americans are colleagues. From now on, our relationship can be called “dismantling of criminal clans.”
— Ali Hashem علي هاشم (@alihashem_tv) January 21, 2023
However, while speaking with the media, the Wagner chief did not address the US allegations directly, but said that it showed that his group and the US were “colleagues” involved in “dismantling criminal clans,” referring to Russia’s declaration that the “special military operation” in Ukraine was meant to remove, what Moscow considers to be an illegal regime.
North Korea Supplying Arms to Wagner Group
Kirby showed declassified images from 18 November, displaying North Korea loading weaponry on Russian rail cargoes.
Nat Sec Council spokesman John Kirby shows what he says is US intelligence pictures showing Russian trains bringing weaponry from North Korea to wage war on Ukraine pic.twitter.com/X6cWSMdwNK
— Sebastian Smith (@SebastianAFP) January 20, 2023
“Now, while we assess that the amount of material delivered to Wagner has not changed battlefield dynamics in Ukraine, we do expect that it will continue to receive North Korean weapons systems,” he noted, urging Pyongyang to “cease these deliveries to Wagner immediately,” calling it a violation of UNSC sanctions. Kirby did not “rule out the possibility for additional sanctions” against Pyongyang.