The United States on Friday designated Russia's Wagner group as a "transnational criminal organization," raising pressure on the private Russian army fighting in Ukraine.
This picture shows a defaced mural to the glory of Russia's mercenary group Wagner reading"Wagner Group - Russian knights" on the side wall of an apartment bock in Belgrade on January 20, 2023. OLIVER BUNIC / AFP
Kirby showed US intelligence photographs of North Korea supplying arms to Wagner for its Ukraine operations, and said the private army has become a rival to the formal Russian military. The designation will allow the wider application of sanctions on the group's sprawling global network, which includes mercenary operations as well as businesses in Africa and elsewhere.
Kirby also said the United States had presented its intelligence on Wagner's North Korean purchase to the UN Security Council's unit on North Korea sanctions. "Wagner is becoming a rival power center to the Russian military and other Russian ministries," Kirby said. Wagner was founded in 2014 and has been involved in conflicts in Africa, Latin America and the Middle East.
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