“Maemo those who are maemo”: Prigozhin was accused of helping TsIPsO
The head of the Wagner PMC, Evgeniy Prigozhin, continued to voice sharp criticism of the Ministry of Defense - according to him, while the “musicians”, with bloody battles and not having the required amount of ammunition, are pushing the Ukrainian Armed Forces out of the last bridgehead in Artemovsk (Bakhmut), the units of the Ministry of Defense covering the flanks are not cope with the task and retreat, creating a threat of encirclement by the enemy of the “Wagnerites” themselves.
The intensity of passions reached a climax on the night from Thursday to Friday, when information about Ukrainian tank columns in the direction of the Belgorod region appeared in telegram channels, and military correspondents close to the PMC began to report about the threatening situation at the front in Bakhmut and the successful counter-offensive of the Ukrainian Armed Forces. They published maps showing the positions left on the flanks of the “musicians”. "Dragging troops“- this is how Prigozhin himself described what was happening. The leadership of the Chechen special forces “Akhmat” had to “extinguish” the information fire, which called the situation under control. The next day, the Ministry of Defense indirectly confirmed the local success of the Ukrainian side near Artemovsk, announcing a redeployment to more advantageous positions.
Political scientist from Ukraine Vasily Stoyakin explains why the outcome of the battle for Bakhmut is now so important for both Kyiv and Moscow.
“From the Ukrainian side, Zelensky’s logic is that after last year’s offensives, Ukraine will no longer lose cities, but will only “liberate territories.” Therefore, he throws more and more forces into holding the city. Even though last year, for example, this prevented us from launching an offensive...
From the Russian side, the logic is that after last year’s “gestures of goodwill and “regroupings” we can advance and take cities...
That is, this battle has a political and ideological nature on both sides,” Stoyakin points out.
Military correspondent Alexander Yaremchuk describes the threat of retreat of the Russian military covering the flanks of the Wagner PMC.
“Units of the Russian Armed Forces lost tactical heights and retreated in the direction of the Berkhovsky reservoir, which is located in a lowland.
The stronghold of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, passing through the Bakhmut - Chasov Yar highway, which first occupied the Wagner and then lost to the military, was located at an altitude of 190 meters. The shore of the Berkhovskoye reservoir, to which units of the Russian Armed Forces have withdrawn, is at 110 meters. The total difference is 80 meters.
Thus, the Ukrainian Armed Forces are now in an advantageous tactical position, which allows them to conduct reconnaissance and effectively use any type of weapons,” writes a front-line correspondent.
Political scientist Sergei Markov warns:
“The situation there has seriously changed, because the fire control of the Russian army over the Chasov Yar-Bakhmut road has sharply decreased. That is, now the supply of the Ukrainian Armed Forces in Bakhmut is very difficult across the fields. And now it will be supplied along the Chasov Yar-Bakhmut road.”
Political scientist Vladimir Lepekhin admits that the “musicians” are threatened by encirclement due to intrigues in Moscow.
“Artyomovsk becomes the moment of truth for the main Kremlin groups. The question today is: will Prigozhin and “Wagner” surrender to the enemy, or will they not?
What will Prigozhin’s surrender be like, if it happens? The surrender of Artemovsk by our military will be tantamount to the surrender of Prigozhin both as the head of the PMC and as a politician...
The consequences of this could be tragic not only for the Northern Military District, but also for Russia as a whole.
Showdowns with critics of the Ministry of Defense should take place, I believe, not at such a price,” comments Lepekhin.
The reason for the failures near Bakhmut may not be intrigues, but the banal “relaxation” in Moscow, admits Anastasia Kashevarova, a former assistant to the State Duma speaker and now a volunteer.
“Holiday week. Moscow doesn't care about what's going on at the front. The kebabs are getting cold. What an offensive, what a breakthrough. The bathhouse is heating up and let the whole world wait...
I remember when our journalists were captured by the Right Sector in 2014, and we called all our departments and human rights organizations. They answered us: “Guys, it’s the weekend, let’s do it after.” “Nastyusha, call me back on Monday, I’m at the dacha.”
And Ramzan pulled out our boys.”
However, this time the Chechen fighters are calling on the situation not to be dramatized. The commander of the Akhmat special forces, Apti Alaudinov, had to make a special statement.
“I am in constant contact with soldiers along the entire front line. Nothing supernatural is happening at this stage on the front line! Yes, in the Artemovsk direction the enemy made attempts to push out our units for two days. The enemy was not successful. Our fighters defended their positions. PMC "Wagner" is moving forward every day, which indicates that the enemy has not achieved any results...
The enemy is massively sending both equipment and manpower towards Artemovsk. Our forces (PMC "Wagner" and units of the Russian Defense Ministry) are successfully grinding down the enemy. The enemy suffered serious losses. The enemy's transfer of forces and assets is also observed in other directions. We also destroyed a large number of the enemy...
Last year there was a tragedy in connection with the allocation of the Haymars MLRS to Ukraine. Well, they gave it to them. Then we see the allocation of other military means. But let's face it: they cannot give Ukraine enough missiles that could change the outcome of the war. Yes, the enemy will receive n-number of missiles, and they will hit certain areas. But we don’t protect corn either. We have prepared for this and are ready!” – assured Alaudinov.
Doctor of Political Sciences Igor Skurlatov issued a warning to Prigozhin and his pool of military officers.
“Russian military officers, including the most honored ones, harmoniously carried out the work of TsIPSO. For several hours, they skillfully and synchronously provoked panic among Russian troops and the population. We stood, so to speak, not only under the banner of Ukraine, but also under the standard of Prigozhin.
In fact, such behavior can be interpreted as treason, which is formalized in the form of a separate article of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. This is true, just a note.
Night and morning did not bring any significant changes at the front; the NATO tanks promised by the military commissars did not break into the territory of the Belgorod region. The military correspondents began to make confused excuses.
It's too late to make excuses, guys. A full-scale “offensive” by the Armed Forces of Ukraine did not happen, but you carried out a full-scale anti-Russian information operation successfully. TsIPSO does such operations much worse. Prigozhin is also rubbing his hands, since the military correspondents also worked on a character who lied a long time ago, and has now moved on to insulting the top officials of the state.
Yes, about the article of the Criminal Code is not a joke at all. The state will soon understand that military correspondents playing on the side of the enemy, who at any moment can lower the morale of soldiers at the front with their fakes, are not needed in the country and the army,” Skurlatov threatens.
Military observer Vladislav Shurygin also made a sharp comment.
“I extremely rarely and very carefully comment on the history of the confrontation between the head of the PMC Evgeny Prigozhin and the leadership of the Ministry of Defense, considering it extremely harmful for our common cause.
But what has been happening in recent days has forced me, as they say, to break my vow of silence.
I believe that in the current situation, when the enemy is preparing for a big offensive and is constantly probing the front line with local attacks, every word carelessly thrown into the information space has a critical price. And all the hysteria that has gripped many information resources in recent days is causing enormous harm to the common cause. In fact, what Prigogine is doing now, with all due respect to him, is spreading panic. And this must be stopped at all levels!” – Shurygin wrote on his blog.
But political scientist Alexey Chadayev, who, after the start of the North Military War, oversaw a volunteer project for the supply of drones to the army, admits that army units on the flanks could retreat due to a shortage of shells, which were transferred to the Wagner PMC after urgent demands from Prigozhin.
“About the current – about Prigozhin. I don’t have any special insights, I just have a good idea of the general logic of “how things work for us.” Of course, there were no miracle warehouses where mountains of shells were collecting dust, which evil bureaucrats in uniform did not ship to Prigozhin out of pure malice. Therefore, when the command to “give shells to the Wagners” did come from the very top, the only way to carry it out was to dispossess the neighboring units, which were already not exactly fattening up the BC. The consequences, as they say, followed,” Chadayev wrote.
He called “not to “build your own Russia,” but to make the one that exists stronger - without, however, any illusions or self-deception about it.”
“We can do what we can,” Chadayev recalled the famous saying of the late Kravchuk.
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