Moscow

The chief of the Russian mercenary Wagner Group has threatened to withdraw his troops from the besieged Bakhmut city, Ukraine, if Moscow fails to address ammunition supply problems.

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According to local media reports, Yevgeny Prigozhin told military blogger Semyon Pegov on April 29 that casualties have been mounting higher than necessary because of the lack of artillery ammunition.

"Every day, we have stacks of thousands of bodies that we put in coffins and send home," Prigozhin said in the interview published on Saturday. 

He had written to Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu asking for additional supplies.

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"If the ammunition deficit is not replenished, we are forced, in order not to run like cowardly rats afterwards, to either withdraw or die."

In an audio statement published on the Telegram messaging app account of his press service on Saturday evening, Prigozhin said that 94 fighters from his group have lost their lives due to lack of ammunition.

“It would have been five times fewer if we had more ammunition,” he said.

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This is the second time he has expressed his ire over the lack of support from the Russian officials.

Ukraine's possible counteroffensive, holds military drills in Zaporizhzhia

Prigozhin had previously claimed that the Russian military was withholding ammunition from his soldiers. He claimed that top Russian officials are committing “treason” by withholding ammunition stockpiles.

The mercenary group chief said that he would be forced to withdraw some of his troops if the situation persists, warning that could lead to collapse elsewhere.

Over the past few months, Russia has been deploying a heavy amount of troops to Bakhmut in the hope of capturing the city as it desperately seeks a win after a series of setbacks. The Russian troops are being assisted by the mercenary Wagner Group, which has claimed to have taken control of the majority parts of the city.

Russia believes that capturing Bakhmut would deal a heavy blow to the Ukrainian defences and be a step towards seizing all of the Donbas industrial region, a major target. Kyiv says the battle is grinding down Russia's best units.

Ukraine in control of key Bakhmut supply route

Ukrainian military on Saturday claimed that they remain in control of a key supply route into Bakhmut, but added that the situation remains "really difficult".

For several weeks, the Russians have been talking about seizing the 'road of life,' as well as about constant fire control over it," Serhiy Cherevatyi, a spokesperson for Ukrainian troops in the east, said in an interview with local news website Dzerkalo Tyzhnia.

"Yes, it is really difficult there, because their attempts to seize the road continue, as well as attempts to establish fire control. But...the defence forces have not allowed the Russians to 'cut off' our logistics."

(With inputs from agencies)

Disclaimer: A number of claims and counterclaims are being made on the Ukraine-Russia conflict on the ground and online. While WION takes utmost care to accurately report this developing news story, we cannot independently verify the authenticity of all statements, photos and videos.

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