The head of the Security Service of Ukraine Vasily Gritsak claims that the Ukrainian special services established the participation of the Wagner Private Military Company (PMC) in conflicts in the Donbas since 2014 and later in Syria.
I want to inform ... that the evidence base of the activities of the Russian military in the Donbass and Syria has been collected ... The activities of the Wagner group ... Campaign leader - Dmitri Utkin
- said Gritsak at a briefing in Kiev on Saturday.
According to him, today 1578 people have been installed - members of the PMCs of Wagner.
For the first time, the activity of the group was recorded from 21 May 2014. The geography of the "Wagner Group" - ORDL, then - Syria. The number of "Wagner groups" in Syria was 1350 people (in the region of Latakia and Homs)
- Gritsak reported
According to V. Gritsak, the SBU has information about the participation of 277 members of the “Wagner Group” both in hostilities in the Donbas and in Syria. At the same time, according to his data, 67 of them died.
Gritsak, in particular, said that the SBU had established the involvement of PMC Wagner in the destruction of IL-76 in the Donbas, the storming of the Lugansk airport and the events in Debaltseve (Donetsk region).
What did the Wagner group do ... shooting down the IL-76 with our paratroopers on board (Ukrainian military transport IL-76 was shot down from an anti-aircraft missile system on the night of 14 on June 2014 of the year when landing at the Luhansk airfield, 40 died Ukrainian soldiers and nine crew members - IF), the storming of the Lugansk airport ... the storming of Debaltseve
- he said.
According to him, 72 militant PMCs took part in the first two operations, of which 15 people were lost.
We know by the names of each. In the storming of Debaltseve 205, Wagner’s militants took part; the casualties are 51 people, we know everyone
- he said.
V. Gritsak clarified that the Ukrainian special services identified 1578 members of PMCs Wagner, including losses.
For the collection of information was used and the agency, and operational and technical measures, and open sources
- Said the head of the SBU.
According to V. Gritsak, Ukraine considers the members of the PMC Wagner as fighters of the armed forces of the Russian Federation.
December 28 2016 of the year adopted amendments to the legislation of Russia, which are allowed to involve non-military personnel in the performance of military tasks regarding the suppression of terrorist activities outside Russia. At the same time, such persons are considered to be those who perform the duties of military service ... thus, with 28.12.2016, we consider the members of Wagner’s private military campaign as military personnel
- explained the head of the SBU.
He said that the SBU had written a notice of suspicion to the head of the Wagner PMC D.Utkin.
Our investigators issued a notice of suspicion for Utkin ... Let's give it to the General Prosecutor’s Office of Ukraine on Monday, we hope that the GPU will support us
- said V. Gritsak.
The head of the SBU did not disclose the article on which D.Utkin’s suspicion was issued. He also noted that the data on the "Wagner Group" of the Security Service of Ukraine transfers the special services of Europe and other countries, given this "private army" can be used "to destabilize the situation anywhere in the world."
The head of the SBU said that on October 19, the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry together with the Ministry of Information Policy in Brussels will hold a special briefing on the "Wagner campaign," reports
Interfax-AVN
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