The Foreign Affairs Committee is today publishing the Government
response to its report “Guns for gold: the Wagner Network
exposed”. The response provides an update on the UK’s attempts to
address the threat posed by Private Military Companies (PMCs) and
in particular the Wagner Network. The Government agrees or
partially agrees to 16 of the Committee’s recommendations,
disagreeing with only one.
The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) agree
with the idea “to establish a cross-Government taskforce on
Wagner” and have “dedicated new resource to containing and
countering Wagner and other Russian proxy PMSCs and are working
closely with Allies to maximise our collective impact.”
The response acknowledges the continued evolution of the Wagner
Network: “significantly, Yevgeny Prigozhin and other senior
leaders of the group died in a plane crash on 23 August”, which
“may create new opportunities”.
The Government says that there is “a real value in exposing the
egregious and self-serving activities of the Wagner Group, in
whatever form it may transition to, as well as other proxy
Russian PMSCs”. The Government highlights that in recent months
it has “increased our efforts to use the FCDO’s overseas network
and strategic communications channels to highlight Wagner’s human
rights’ abuses and its destabilising role. We have also stepped
up our assessment and policy co-ordination with Western and
regional partners.”
On the proscription of the Wagner Network, the Government says
that it “judges that Wagner commits and participates in
terrorism”, emphasising the use of serious violence in Ukraine.
The Government states that the group has been implicated “in
serious acts of violence and damage to property while working in
a variety of African countries, demonstrating Wagner’s broader
involvement in terrorism.”
Chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee, , said:
“I welcome the Foreign Office’s positive response to our report
and adoption of 16 recommendations. Efforts to counter the Wagner
Network have stepped up in recent months, and we are pleased that
the Foreign Affairs Committee has been able to contribute to this
work.
“Private Military Companies are a clear threat to global security
and the rules-based international order. The proliferation of the
Wagner Network across four continents should be a wake-up call
for the UK Government: for too long we have underestimated and
neglected this group, and the issue of PMCs more broadly.
“Part of the problem lies in the attractiveness of groups, such
as Wagner, to autocratic and corrupt regimes as a tool of regime
survival. In return for gold and critical minerals, their guns
for hire exploit parts of the world grappling with poverty and
conflict, deploying brutality and criminality to secure the
outcomes their Kremlin and local paymasters’ desire. The UK must
be prepared to offer real alternatives to countries that are
struggling and highlight the severe – and sometimes deadly –
consequences of collaboration with Wagner.
“The proscription of the Wagner Network in September – which the
Foreign Affairs Committee had called for in our report – is a
logical step towards putting greater costs on those who partner
with the group.
“Sanctions are also a powerful tool and a mechanism to prevent
mercenaries from profiting from their heinous crimes. We are
pleased that the Government has taken our recommendation to
sanction key individuals onboard.
“The crimes committed by the Wagner Network fall heaviest on
innocent people in territories where Wagner maintains control for
corrupt elites. Steps to counter this ruthless group are welcome
– but there is still more to be done.”
