The Wagner mercenary group from Russia will be designated a prohibited terrorist organisation, the UK stated on Wednesday, September 6. Despite the death of its commander Yevgeny Prigozhin, the group continues to pose a threat to international security.
According to the administration, a bill to outlaw the organisation under the Terrorism Act would be introduced in Parliament. Once parliamentarians give their approval, the designation will prohibit participation in or backing of Wagnhas, a prominent combatant group during Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Additionally, it has been active in Syria and several African countries.
Wagner “has been involved in looting, torture, and barbarous murders,” according to Home Secretary Suella Braverman. Its activities in the Middle East, Africa, and Ukraine pose a threat to international security.
The proscription order, she said, “makes that clear in UK law that they are terrorists, plain and simple.”
Since Wagner is not known to be active in Britain, the ban will give UK authorities the ability to take the organization’s assets, but this authority is mostly symbolic.
The action is in response to a suggestion that Wagner be prohibited made by the important Foreign Affairs Committee of Parliament in July. The committee claimed that the threat presented by the mercenary group had been “underplayed and underestimated” by British authorities.
The committee claimed that Wagner’s future was in doubt as a result of Prigozhin’s armed uprising against Russia’s top military officials in June. The legislators recommended that Britain “disrupt” Wagner by taking advantage of the disorganised situation.
Two months after the mutiny in June, Prigozhin was reported dead in a plane crash on August 23. A preliminary review by US intelligence found that the airliner was brought down by an intentional explosion. Vladimir Putin’s administration in Russia has denied involvement.
