On May 5, head of the Wagner PMC Evgeny Prigozhin declared that Wagner fighters will leave the city of Bakhmut on May 10 and will hand over control of their positions to the units of the Russian Ministry of Defence.
The reason of Prigozhin’s decision is the shell hunger which was artificially created by Russian military commanders responsible for the supply of ammunition to the front lines.
“On May 10, 2023, we are forced to hand over positions in the village of Bakhmut to the units of the Ministry of Defense and withdraw the remnants of the Wagner PMC to the rear camps to lick wounds. I am withdrawing the units of the Wagner PMCs from Bakhmut, because due to the absence of ammunition they are doomed to senseless death,” the appeal says.
The video appeal was accompanied by the following message from Yevgeny Prigozhin and the Command and fighters of the Wagner PMC to the Chief of the General Staff, the Minister of Defense, the Supreme Commander-in-Chief and the people of Russia:
On March 16, 2022, we were asked to immediately stand up to defend our homeland.
On March 19, 2022, all units arrived from various directions from Africa and joined the first battle.
We chose the direction of our offensive ourselves — the most prepared stronghold of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
On May 9, 2022, we took control of the town of Popasnaya, which was the first significant victory in the Donbass.
After a series of failures of the Russian Defense Ministry on various front lines, on October 8, 2022, it was decided together with Army General Surovikin to launch Operation Bakhmut Meat Grinder.
The operation Bakhmut Meat Grinder was highly effective, distracted a huge number of enemy forces and enabled the Russian army to occupy advantageous defensive lines and continue the offensive.
In September-October 2022, during the retreat of the units of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation from Krasny Liman, Izyum and Balakleya, the units of the Wagner PMC held back the enemy’s onslaught near Kremennaya, taking a defense line with a length of 132 km, as well as the line of the second echelon of 207 km.
After these events, the units of the Wagner PMC fell out of favor with envious bureaucrats who are close to military affairs. Artificial shell hunger began. An attempt has been made to create an artificial personnel shortage.
By May 9, 2023, we were supposed to take control of Bakhmut. The bureaucrats close to the military affairs were aware of our plans, but from May 1, they almost cut us off from any artillery ammunition.
The units of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation, which are aimed to cover our flanks, hardly restrain them. The declared number of troops is very different from the real one. Instead of tens of thousands, there are ten and rarely hundreds of fighters.
The offensive resources of the Wagner PMCs ended at the beginning of April, but we are advancing, despite the fact that the enemy forces outnumber us by five times. This is at the standards of at least a three-fold advantage, which should have been on our side during the offensive.
Due to the lack of ammunition, our losses are growing exponentially every day.
Despite this, the council of commanders of the Wagner PMC decided to hold positions and continue the offensive on Bakhmut until May 10, 2023, so that the sacred holiday for Russians — May 9, Victory Day — would be met with the brilliance of Russian weapons.
I am officially addressing the Chief of the General Staff, the Minister of Defense, the Supreme Commander-in-Chief and the people of Russia. I declare on behalf of the fighters of the Wagner PMC, on behalf of the Command of the Wagner PMC, that on May 10, 2023, we are forced to turn over control of our positions in Bakhmut to the units of the Ministry of Defense and withdraw the remnants of the Wagner PMC to the rear camps to lick wounds. I am withdrawing the units of the Wagner PMCs from Bakhmut because in the absence of ammunition they are doomed to senseless death.
I am appealing openly, since none of my letters have been considered, I have reported on all the problems since March 19, 2022.
The Defense Minister said this week that there is more than enough ammunition. The shortage of shells in the Wagner PMC is 90%.
I ask the Chief of the General Staff to sign a combat order addressed to the Wagner PMC for the handing of the positions in the city of Bakhmut to the units of the Ministry of Defense and specify the date when they will replace us in positions.
Of course, I foresee criticism. After some time, there will be smart guys who will say that it was necessary to stay in Bakhmut etc. Those who have critical comments — come to Bakhmut, welcome, stand up with weapons in your hands instead of our murdered comrades.
I want to emphasize once again: out of 45 square kilometers of Bakhmut, 2.5 kilometers remain (under Ukrainian control). By not giving us shells, you are not depriving us of victory, you are depriving the people of Russia of victory.
We will lick our wounds, and when the motherland is in danger, we will stand up to defend her again. The Russian people can count on us.
The Kremlin reported that they saw Prigozhin’s messages bu tno other claims have been provided so far.
Evgeny Prigozhin has been constantly complaining on the lack of ammunition, blaming the Russian military command for complicating Wagner’s military operations.
In the recent days, Prigozhin has shared numerous appeals from the front lines, claiming that Wagner’s losses are growing.
The following video was shared on May 4:
Prigozhin’s decision to withdraw troops from Bakhmut led the public into confusion, and various experts gave different comments.
On the one hand, Prigozhin has always been responsible for his fighters and has always fought for their wellbeing and honor in various Russian institutions. The decision to leave Bakhmut may be the last call for military officials to fulfill the demands of the fighters.
His decision indicates a deep conflict between representatives of Russian elites, which may become the first stage of a major internal conflict in Russia.
On the other hand, some experts noted that the Wagner militants did not lose the military initiative on the streets of Bakhmut, despite the obstacles stated by the head of the PMCs. They suggested that the escalation of the public scandal between the Wagner PMC and the Russian Ministry of Defense may be a sophisticated media campaign aimed at drawing the Ukrainian military to the offensive in Bakhmut in order to destroy the Ukrainian military potential on the ruins of the war-torn city. The main argument is that such a loud statement was made just on the eve of the Ukrainian counteroffensive, which seems to be starting right now.
