UK underestimating Wagner risk and want to maneuver ‘sooner and more durable’, MPs warn

Britain is underestimating the hazard posed by the Wagner Group, MPs have warned.

In a brand new 82-page report, the Commons Foreign Affairs Committee branded present sanctions on the mercenary group as “underwhelming in the extreme” and referred to as on the Government to “move faster and harder”.

The group of MPs are additionally urging for Yevgeny Prigozhin’s unit to be proscribed as a terrorist organisation.

Foreign Affairs committee chair Alicia Kearns stated: “This is a landmark report and exposes the dark underbelly of a network that until recently thrived in the shadows.

“In the ten years for the reason that Wagner Network’s formation, the UK Government has lacked a coherent technique and efforts to meaningfully deal with Wagner have been non-existent.

“This has allowed the network to grow, spread its tentacles deep into Africa, and exploit countries on their knees due to conflict or instability.

“Where the West strikes out, Wagner strikes in, seeing alternative in struggling and revenue in chaos.

“Today’s report lays bare the activities of the network in seven key countries, where there is clear evidence of Wagner operations.”

The report sees the committee for the primary time utilizing open-source investigative analysis to call Wagner-linked people and organisations, with testimony from former senior fighters from the group additionally included.

The way forward for Wagner stays unclear after Mr Prigozhin and his troops final month staged a dramatic however short-lived coup towards Russian President Vladimir Putin.

But MPs warn that the group, described as “highly effective” at reconfiguring itself, nonetheless poses a “serious national security threats to the UK and its allies”.

It stated ministers are presently “remarkably complacent” a couple of “growing practice” of personal navy firms getting used for “malign purposes”.

The report additionally raised issues over what it calls the “significant failing” of seeing the Wagner Group largely by way of the prism of Europe.

It notes that the corporate have carried out navy operations in no less than seven international locations up to now decade, together with Ukraine, Syria, Sudan, Libya and Mali.

It stated: “It is deeply regrettable that it was not until early 2022 that the Government began to invest greater resource in understanding the Wagner Network, despite Wagner fighters having already conducted military operations in at least seven countries for almost a decade.”

MPs additionally name on the Government to supply a “compelling” different to international locations that require safety partnerships, reviving a former dedication to channel half of UK support to fragile and conflict-hit international locations and areas.

They additionally urge a extra “coherent” method to addressing the hazard of Wagner and related teams with a brand new taskforce.

Ms Kearns stated: “In the wake of the attempted coup last month, the future manifestations of the Wagner Network are uncertain. With the network at its most vulnerable – and the clock ticking – the time for action is now.”