Russian mercenary boss Yevgeny Prigozhin has purportedly appeared in a video welcoming his fighters to Belarus and saying their training will make the Belarusian army the second best in the world.
The head of the Wagner Group is apparently heard saying his men will stay in Belarus for some time and hit out at the situation on the front line in Ukraine, calling it a “disgrace”.
In the night-time footage, he reportedly said they would take no further part in the war for now.
He is believed to have said: “Welcome lads… welcome to Belarusian soil.
“We fought honourably. You have done a great deal for Russia. What is going on at the front is a disgrace that we do not need to get involved in.”
Prigozhin then told his men to behave well towards the local people and ordered them to train the Belarusian army and summon up their strength for a “new journey to Africa”.
“And perhaps we will return to the SMO (special military operation in Ukraine) at some point when we are sure that we will not be forced to shame ourselves,” Prigozhin said.
The footage has not yet been verified and it is unclear exactly when it was taken.
Last month, Prigozhin led a short-lived rebellion, railing against top Russian defence officials as his fighters headed towards Moscow.
He called off the mutiny and his mercenaries pulled back after Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko helped broker a “deal”, which would supposedly see the businessman move to the Russian-allied country and his forces absorbed into the military.
However, Mr Lukashenko said earlier this month the Wagner leader was back in Russia and his fighters had not taken up an offer to relocate across the border.
