Up front with two of Vladimir Putin's feared Wagner Group mercenary fighters held in Ukraine in a world-first interview.
Two captured Russian mercenaries have said they signed up for the Ukraine frontline after being told they were at war with the West - including the UK.
Both wore balaclavas for their own safety as their Ukrainian captors agreed to protect their anonymity in case they are killed if they are ever released. Married father-of-two Viktor, a convicted murderer from Stavropolsky region in Kavkaz, southeast Russia, was jailed for stabbing a Chechen to death in a club brawl.
“I met Yevgeny Prizoghin and in total 200 of us agreed to join Wagner Group in exchange for a fresh start, money and I would be able to get a job after leaving Ukraine. With a criminal record I would not get a job and I felt I had no choice, even though it took a week for me to decide to join Wagner.”
After training they were sent into battle in assault squads, quickly realising they were being lied to. He recalled: “I was nervous, yes. I did not know where I would be sent to and even now my family do not know I joined the Wagner Group. “I was not beaten and the Ukrainians treated me well. I have nothing against them. We were shown a video when we joined, suggesting if we got captured we would be killed.
Both men were dressed in combat fatigues and boots and were not forced to talk to us by their captors. Despite the grisly past of these two men the Mirror were asked by Ukrainian authorities to pixelate their eyes as an extra measure to avoid them being identified by Wagner Group hit squads in the future.
“I signed up for Wagner and everyone makes his own decisions. I had no idea where I was going - but I understood we would fight in Ukraine.”
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