Wagner mercenaries battling financial crunch as Kremlin stops funds

London, Aug 13 (EFE).- Russia’s private military force, Wagner, is grappling with a financial crunch amid speculation that the Kremlin has stopped funding the mercenary group, according to British military intelligence on Sunday.

“The Wagner group is likely moving towards a down-sizing and reconfiguration process, largely to save on staff salary expenses at a time of financial pressure,” the defense intelligence services said in the latest report.

The intelligence report said the Russian state had been “acting against some other business interests of Wagner owner Yevgeny Prigozin” since the private army’s abortive mutiny of June 2023.

“There is a realistic possibility that the Kremlin no longer funds the group,” the report noted.

The report suggested that “the second most plausible paymaster” for Wagner is Belarus.

“However, the sizeable force would be a significant and potentially unwelcome drain on modest Belarusian resources,” it said.

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