Russian Wagner Group bought North Korean weapons and is recruiting sick ... trends now
The White House on Thursday revealed extraordinary details of how Russian mercenary group Wagner is propping up Vladimir Putin's desperate war effort, buying North Korean arms and recruiting sick convicts to fight in Ukraine.
It reflects how Moscow has become increasingly reliant on the company, which is run by Yevgeny Prigozhin, nicknamed 'Putin's chef.'
'In effect, Prigozhin controls a private army that fights alongside the forces of the Russian Federation,' John Kirby, spokesperson for the White House National Security Council, told reporters.
'Prigozhin is spending more than $100 million per month to fund Wagner’s operations inside Ukraine.'
Kirby said the Russian operation had reached brutal levels of desperation, with Prigozhin throwing his own troops into the 'meat grinder.'
The White House revealed extraordinary details on Thursday of how Russian mercenary group Wagner is propping up Vladimir Putin's desperate war effort, by buying missiles and rockets from North Korea. The group has been active in fighting in the battle of Donbas (pictured)
White House security spokesman John Kirby (left) told reporters that the head of Wagner, Yevgeny Prigozhin (right), was throwing his troops in 'the meat grinder'
A convicted murderer who was released from prison to fight for Russia was beaten to death with a sledgehammer last month by his countrymen after 'surrendering' to Ukraine.
Yevgeny Nuzhin had been serving a 24-year prison sentence for murder when he was freed earlier this year and conscripted into Wagner group, Vladimir Putin's private army.
The Wagner Group was founded in 2014 and its mercenaries dispatched to all corner
The 55-year-old was reported to have defected soon after arriving on the frontline, and in September told a journalist he felt like 'cannon fodder' and had decided to surrender as some of his family live in Ukraine.
However, a pro-Russian source says he was later kidnapped by pro-Kremlin forces and has since been killed in revenge for his decision to leave.
Grey Zone, a media outlet in Russia, posted a graphic video in which Nuzhin can be seen strapped to a column of bricks with clingfilm.
The footage shows him being hit with a sledgehammer multiple times, with a message from the pro-Wagner Grey Zone Telegram channel saying: 'Those who understand know that a sledgehammer and traitors have a close relationship.'
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And he said Wagner was hunting the world for arms suppliers.
'We can confirm that North Korea has completed an initial arms delivery to Wagner, which paid for that equipment. Last month, North Korea delivered infantry rockets and missiles into Russia for use by Wagner,' Kirby said.
Last month Pyongyang said it had no plans to deal arms to Russia last month when Washington said it had supplied a 'significant' number of artillery shells.
The new revelations triggered international
