WITH HIM OR AGAINST HIM

Putin Orders Wagner Fighters to Sign Loyalty Pledge

The Russian leader signed the decree on Friday in an attempt to strong-arm the mercenary group into declaring allegiance to the Russian state.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has reportedly ordered Wagner fighters to sign an oath of allegiance to the Russian state after their chief Yevgeny Prigozhin was believed to have been killed in a deadly plane crash. Reuters reported that Putin signed the decree bringing in the change with immediate effect on Friday. The Kremlin said that suggestions it had ordered Prigozhin’s death was an “absolute lie” and declined to confirm his death, saying it was awaiting test results. It comes as Rusich, a far-right sub-unit of Wagner, said on Saturday that it was stopping military operations in Ukraine. The BBC reported that Rusich accused Russia in a Telegram post of failing to protect Yan Petrovsky, a founding member of the group, after he was arrested in Finland for allegedly violating his visa.