“Nikolaj” is in a prison in Russia. He is serving a sentence for attempted murder, and has just been recruited by the Wagner group, also known as Putin’s secret army. Together with 67 other prisoners from the prison, he will take a plane to the war in Ukraine, according to the organization “Russia behind the walls”. “Nikolaj” says that the family did not like that he wanted to go. – Of course not. But we’re adults, I’m not a boy. I know what I’m getting into. I have a six-year-old daughter, but she seems to understand me, he says on the phone to Olga Romanova. She is the head of “Russia behind the walls”, a human rights organization that works for prisoners. Secret agreement According to Romanova, around 3,000 prisoners have been recruited for the war in Ukraine. She says they are promised a high monthly salary. And if they fight for at least six months, they will be pardoned and have their criminal records expunged. Many have called Romanova’s organization to ask about the recruitment and the agreement they have entered into. One of them is “Nikolaj”. Romanova is a renowned journalist, who has been honored by Fritt Ord, among others. Swedish SVT has gained access to the interview that Romanova has done with the inmate, but the name of the prison and the inmate must be kept secret. We call the inmate “Nikolaj”. – We received an offer of pardon. I wrote my name and that I agree to participate in the special military operation in Ukraine. I had to swear to keep the release and deployment a secret, he says. Russian forces in Ukraine. The image has been released by the Russian Ministry of Defense. Photo: AP Says he was in a torture camp, “Nikolaj” does not envision a future as a law-abiding citizen. – I have been in prison for ten years. I will not be able to fully integrate into society. I want to accidentally do something again, he says. “Nikolaj” says that he was visited by two soldiers from Wagner. They asked him a series of questions about why he wanted to go to war. “Nikolaj” replied that he had seen on TV that children and women die in the war. He also said that he had been in torture camps, and that he had many negative feelings in prison. – Being free is not an option for me. That’s why I want to go, said “Nikolaj”. – Well, then there is nothing to talk about, the soldier from Wagner had replied. The only thing “Nikolaj” then had to go through was a lie detector test. There they investigated, among other things, whether he could join the enemy. – I think the lie detector test was just for show, says “Nikolaj”. The Wagner Group furthers Putin’s interests in destabilizing the West and orchestrating a new Cold War. Watch the documentary here. Last resort The interview with “Nikolaj” shows that he has no strong opinions about the war. Olga Romanova believes the inmates realize that no one outside the walls wants them, they will never get a job or a normal life. – It is easier for them to become mercenaries and kill on command than to end up in prison for new murders. This is of course a result of a total lack of social assistance and rehabilitation in Russia, she believes. At the end of June 2022, the Wagner group started recruiting in prisons in Russia, and several prisoners have been killed in Ukraine. According to Romanova, many prisoners have told how Putin’s close friend, Yevgeny Prigozhin, has been involved in recruiting in the prisons. Wagner is said to have been started in collaboration between the Kremlin and the country’s military intelligence service, the GRU. The company is headed by music lover Dmitrii Utkin. He is said to have named Wagner after the German composer. According to the US Treasury Department, the company is probably financed by Yevgeny Prigozhin. The oligarch nicknamed “Putin’s chef” has denied this. Yevgeny Prigozhin is referred to as Putin’s chef. Here he serves Putin in November 2011. Photo: Misha Japaridze / AP From covert operations to propaganda The organization estimates that at least 50,000 prisoners can be recruited in the near future. The Wagner group has previously been used in covert operations that Russia could deny. Now the group is used more to spread fear, explains Åse Gilje Østensen at the Naval Academy in Bergen, which is part of the Norwegian Defense Academy. Åse Gilje Østensen is an associate professor at the Naval Academy in Bergen. Photo: news She has a doctorate in the use of private security and military companies, and is one of the country’s foremost experts on the Wagner Group. – It was said that the Wagner group was going into Kyiv to liquidate the leadership there. The Ukrainians were to be intimidated from resisting, Østensen explains to news. In several countries At the start of the company, the idea was that the Wagner group would offer guard services and smaller mercenary missions. But over time the assignments and the number of employees have grown. news has previously discussed how the group has recruited mercenaries from Syria for the war in Ukraine. Østensen says it is highly uncertain how large the group is now. – In Syria, they operated with 2,000 at the highest. There have been 500 in the Central African Republic. How many are in Ukraine now is very uncertain. You have a mixture of experienced Wagner soldiers and a lot of fresh, low-quality recruits, she says. Now Russia is resorting to criminals to get enough recruits. – Wagner has previously allowed you to have small things on the roll, but now they are scraping the bottom of what exists. There are people who have little motivation for war, but are motivated to get out of prisons, says Østensen.
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Claims the Wagner group has recruited 3,000 soldiers from Russian prisons – news Urix – Foreign news and documentaries
