The head of the private military group Wagner on Monday rejected a report he had offered to share the deployment of Russian army troops around Bakhmut with Ukraine in exchange for a withdrawal of Kiev’s troops from the area in eastern Ukraine.
The Wagner group has been a driving force behind Russia’s months-long struggle to take Bakhmut, which has cost thousands of lives on both sides and left much of the city in ruins. Its founder, Yevgeny V. Prigozhin, has publicly clashed with Russia’s military leaders over the battle for the city, accusing them of starving his troops of ammunition.
The Washington Post reported Sunday that a document from the US intelligence agency has been leaked on the messaging platform Discord said Mr Prigozhin told contacts in Ukraine’s military intelligence that he was ready to betray the locations of the Russian army around Bakhmut if Kiev agreed to withdraw from the near Bakhmut. A Ukrainian official told The Post that Mr Prigozhin’s offer – made “more than once” – had been rejected.
On an audio rack Published by his press office on Monday, Mr Prigozhin called the report “speculation” and a “hoax”. He suggested that Russia’s corrupt elites, who he said were jealous of the achievements of its fighters on the front lines in Ukraine and eager to damage his reputation, could be responsible.
Mr. Prigozhin’s mercenaries have taken the lead in an attempt to capture Bakhmut, site of the longest and one of the bloodiest battles of the war, while Russian forces have controlled the area around the city’s flanks. In recent weeks, Mr Prigozhin has stepped up his accusations of incompetence against the Russian military leadership.
Despite open quarrels with top Russian officials, Mr. Prigozhin has been careful not to criticize President Vladimir V. Putin.
Dmitri S. Peskov, Mr Putin’s spokesman, said he would not comment on The Post’s report but said “it looks like yet another hoax”.