Prigozhin explains to the prisoners that those who accept his proposal will be pardoned without having to serve their sentence to the end
The so-called Private Military Company (ChVK in Russian acronym), Wagner, has distributed on social networks a video in which the head, promoter and owner of this mercenary recruiting company, Russian oligarch Evgueni Prigozhin, is seen in a Russian prison encouraging prisoners to join its ranks to fight in Ukraine. “I represent a private military company. You may have heard of the Wagner group. War is difficult. It’s not like the war in Afghanistan or the one in Chechnya. I have ammunition two and a half times higher than in Stalingrad,” says Prigozhin.
Prigozhin also informs the detainees that those who accept his proposal will be pardoned and, after serving in Ukraine, released without serving their prison term to the end. Wagner’s boss, who warns that the deserters will be shot, gives them only five minutes at the end of his speech to think and say whether or not they want to enlist.
“After six months you go home and receive forgiveness. Whoever wants to stay with us, stays with us. There are no options to go back. If you arrive on the first day and say ‘this is for me’, the deserter will be flagged and then we will execute him,” he specifies.
Next, Prigozhin describes the list of offenses that cannot be committed by combatants who agree to join Wagner. “The first sin is desertion. Nobody turns their backs. Nobody flinches. Nobody gives up. The second sin is alcohol and drugs in the combat zone. During the six months that you are with us, you will always be in the combat zone. The third sin is looting, including sexual contact, with women, flora, fauna, men, whatever,” he says.
“The minimum age we accept is 22 years old. If you are younger, you will need a document signed by a family member who agrees. The maximum age is about 50 years. But if you are strong, in the interview we will do some basic tests to check how strong you are. Good physical shape is fundamental,” continues Wagner’s boss.
The lack of military personnel has brought the “special military operation” in Ukraine to a standstill and the Russian authorities are trying by all means to recruit soldiers as the Kremlin for the time being rules out martial law and general mobilization, a measure that would force the male population of Russia to enter the ranks of the army.
Source: La Verdad
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