So, the long-awaited offensive begins..not so well--for Russia:
The mercenary Wagner Group chief Yevgeny Prigozhin has called on Moscow to provide him with 200,000 troops in order to halt the long-promised Ukrainian counteroffensive, as assaults by Kyiv troops reportedly pushed past Russian defensive lines and made ground around the devastated Donetsk city of Bakhmut.
Prigozhin—well-known for his public bravado and criticism of the regular Russian military hierarchy—said in a video posted to his official Telegram channel on Tuesday that his Wagner organization is the only armed force capable of stopping the Ukrainian attack, which officials in Russia and the West say may have now begun.
"I need 200,000 people," Prigozhin said, as quoted in an article by The Moscow Times. "Less than 200,000 on the Luhansk-Donetsk frontline will not cope. We are ready to take full responsibility."
MSN
www.msn.com
The mercenary Wagner Group chief Yevgeny Prigozhin has called on Moscow to provide him with 200,000 troops in order to halt the long-promised Ukrainian counteroffensive, as assaults by Kyiv troops reportedly pushed past Russian defensive lines and made ground around the devastated Donetsk city of Bakhmut.
Prigozhin—well-known for his public bravado and criticism of the regular Russian military hierarchy—said in a video posted to his official Telegram channel on Tuesday that his Wagner organization is the only armed force capable of stopping the Ukrainian attack, which officials in Russia and the West say may have now begun.
"I need 200,000 people," Prigozhin said, as quoted in an article by The Moscow Times. "Less than 200,000 on the Luhansk-Donetsk frontline will not cope. We are ready to take full responsibility."