Chechen warlord Kadyrov also wants to create his own private military company
Kadyrov wants to create his own private military company (Photo:Kadyrov95 / Telegram)
Ramzan Kadyrov, the Kremlin's puppet warlord in Chechnya, has said that after completing his government service he plans to create his own private military company or PMC similar to the notorious Wagner mercenary company.
Kadyrov on his Telegram channel on Feb. 19 praised the Wagner mercenaries of Russian oligarch Yevgeny Prigozhin, claiming "they've managed to achieve a lot despite the difficulties."
"We can already definitely say that Wagner (Group) has absolutely proven its military effectiveness and drew a line under talks about the necessity of PMC," Kadyrov wrote.
He added that he plans to create his own PMC "after completing his service in government" to "become a competitor" to Prigozhin.
Kadyrov has many times talked of his intention to resign from his position as Chechen leader, though he has yet to follow through and few take his claims that he will resign seriously.
Russian officials have established a tradition of creating their own mercenary companies. Besides the Wagner mercenary company of Prigozhin, Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu has also created his own PMC, called Patriot.
Russian oil monopolist Gazprom Neft is also establishing another PMC, Ukrainian intelligence has revealed.
The Wagner mercenary company is notorious for its brutality in conflicts in Ukraine, Syria and African countries. In recent weeks, it has published two videos of the murders by sledgehammer of two of its own recruits that it accused of betraying Russian forces.
Wagner is also thought to have recruited around 50,000 convicts in Russian prisons to fight in Ukraine on the promise of a pardon and freedom after six months.
Captured Wagner convicts have reported appalling brutality in the company’s ranks, and assault teams suffering up to 50% casualties in fighting against Ukrainian forces in the key Donetsk Oblast town of Bakhmut.
Wagner has been attempting to capture Bakhmut for months, but has failed to make significant progress so far.
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