Prigozhin called the White House statement on the supply of weapons to the DPRK for the Wagner PMCs "speculation" The number of PMCs "Wagner" allegedly reached 50 thousand people, and the cost of grouping is up to $ 100 million, the White House said.
In addition, the United States believes that North Korea supplies its missiles to the Wagnerians, but the DPRK denies such statements. Nevertheless, the US Permanent Representative said that she would raise this issue at a meeting of the UN Security Council. Yevgeny Prigozhin called the information about the supply of weapons from North Korea "gossip" and "speculation".
The US leadership believes that the number of private military company (PMCs) "Wagner" has reached 50 thousand people during the fighting in Ukraine. This was stated during a briefing by the coordinator of strategic communications of the National Security Council of the United States John Kirby, reports TASS.
Kirby added that the White House suspects the DPRK of supplying the Russian Federation with missiles in November - allegedly designed specifically for their use by the Wagnerians.
"Today we can confirm that the DPRK has completed the initial supply of weapons to the Wagner PMCs, which paid for this equipment. Last month, the DPRK delivered missiles and shells to Russia for use by Wagner," the coordinator said. However, he added, the White House does not believe that North Korean missiles will be able to change the dynamics of the fighting.
Earlier, the North Korean Defense Ministry claimed that Pyongyang has not supplied and does not plan to supply Moscow with any weapons or ammunition, and the States are making such statements to "undermine the image of the DPRK."
Businessman Yevgeny Prigozhin, the creator of the Wagner PMCs, said in a comment to RBC that Kirby's statements are speculation.
"Unfortunately, Mr. Kirby makes quite a lot of statements based on speculation. Everyone knows that North Korea has not supplied any weapons to the Russian Federation for a long time. And such attempts were not even made. Therefore, the supply of weapons from the DPRK is nothing but gossip and speculation," he said.
He added that the PMCs is acquiring a large number of American weapons.
"Therefore, most likely, my lawyers will be actively involved in the process of lifting US sanctions on the supply of weapons to the Wagner PMCs. We consider these restrictions absolutely unfair, due to the fact that the Wagner PMCs has never violated international trade rules when buying American weapons," the entrepreneur stressed.
On November 22, the US Department of Commerce imposed export restrictions on the Wagner PMCs in order to restrict the group's access to technical means. The agency corrected the existing black lists, where the Wagner PMCs was included in 2017. PMCs are listed as the "final consumer of military goods"
From the USA, Wagner is prohibited from any deliveries, including re-export. "In the coming weeks, we also intend to announce new sanctions measures against Wagner and support networks in countries around the world," John Kirby said afterwards.
The UN has no data
The statement of the US leadership regarding the alleged supply of missiles from the DPRK to the Wagner PMCs was supported by British Foreign Minister James Cleverley.
"The UK will work together with partners to ensure that North Korea pays a high price," the diplomat said. According to him, these deliveries violate the resolutions of the UN Security Council.
The US Permanent Representative to the UN, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, in turn, said that American diplomats would raise the issue of North Korean missiles at the Wagner PMCs in the UN Security Council.
The representative of the UN Secretary General Stephane Dujarric said that the world organization does not have information about the alleged supply of weapons from the DPRK PMCS "Wagner".
The number of PMCs "Wagner"
Since the beginning of the SVO, Russian media have reported that businessman Yevgeny Prigozhin began recruiting prisoners from correctional institutions of the Russian Federation in the Wagner Private security Company.
According to foreign publications, at the time of its foundation in 2014, the number of private military companies was about 1 thousand people. Subsequently, the number of "mercenaries" allegedly increased to 2,000 people. According to sources from the German newspaper Bild in the Bundeswehr, the total number of PMCs "Wagner" in 2020 reached 2500 people.
In 2016, RBC estimated the content of the Wagner Group from 5.1 billion to 10.3 billion rubles per year. The costs included salaries, base supplies, accommodation and meals, one-time expenses for equipment, compensation to the families of the victims.
"The tape.<url>" in 2016 reported that the Wagner PMCs group in Syria numbered 4,840 people.
Ivan Zhukovsky
