Belarusian official denies Wagner Group’s relocation to Asipovičy

July 7, BPN. Wagner Group members have not decided whether to stay at a tent base near Asipovičy, Mahiloŭ region, a Belarusian defense official has said.

“Operational groups have not been here, have not seen it and have not made the decision,” Leanid Kasinski, an aide to Belarusian Defense Minister Viktar Chrenin, told reporters, as quoted by TASS.

He said the training camp was built for military personnel and territorial defense troops with the help of local authorities. It can accommodate some 5,000 people and has facilities to store equipment, he added.

Wagner Group is led by Yevgeny Prigozhin, formerly a close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin. Prigozhin in late June called for an armed rebellion to oust the Russian defense minister, but later backed down after reaching agreements with Belarusian ruler Alaksandr Łukašenka.

Łukašenka said Belarus is not building any camps for the Kremlin-linked private military contractor.

“We have offered them a few former military facilities, used in Soviet times, including near Asipovičy. If they agree. But the Wagner Group has a different vision for their deployment and of course, I will not talk about this vision,” he said yesterday.