“…This is a useful tool” – Russian politician is photographed proudly holding a sledgehammer, a gift from Wagner – View photo

A senior Russian politician today released a photo of himself clutching a sledgehammer donated to him by Wagner’s mercenary company, a tool the Russian paramilitary group has adopted as a symbol of revenge since it was used last year to kill a man who defected from Wagner.

The macabre gift appears to be a thank you to Sergei Mironov, leader of the pro-Kremlin Just Russia party, for his support of Wagner and her exploits on the battlefields of eastern Ukraine.

Mironov, a former paratrooper, praised Wagner, which claims to be a private military company, with the Russian lawmaker speaking of a “heroic military formation” after the organization spearheaded an operation that saw Russian forces month to occupy the Ukrainian city of Solentar.

Thank you Евгения Пригожина for the gift. This is a useful instrument. With his help, together we broke through the redoubts of the Nazis, who set as their goal the destruction of our country. Let all our enemies realize that nothing will work out for them. The future of Russia depends on us.

России быть! pic.twitter.com/B5i8dBKdlf

— Сергей Миронов (@mironov_ru) January 20, 2023

The politician posted a photo of himself posing with the sledgehammer on his social media accounts, thanking Yevgeny Prigozhin, founder of Wagner, for the unusual gift.

The metal head of the sledgehammer bore the Wagner logo and was painted with skulls.

“… This is a useful tool. With his help, we will make a dent in the Nazi ideology that aims to destroy our country,” said Mironov, who, like many other Russian politicians, describes the war in Ukraine as an existential battle for Russia’s survival against a vicious West.

While the Kremlin says groups like Wagner are free to operate abroad, the activities of private military companies in Russia are technically prohibited.

Mironov said on Tuesday that Wagner’s activities must be legalized within Russia and said his party had drafted the necessary legislation.

Having previously shied away from the public eye, Wagner founder Yevgeny Prigozhin has been taking on an increasingly prominent profile in recent months, criticizing Russian military commanders for what he said were failures on the battlefield and voicing opinions on various political issues.

Prigozhin has spoken of the sledgehammer as a symbol of revenge to be used against people he considers traitors.

In November, an unverified video was posted on a social media channel associated with Wagner, showing someone using a sledgehammer to kill a Wagner fighter who had surrendered to Ukrainian forces and said he wanted to fight for them.

Prigozhin initially said the man died “like a dog dies”, but did not claim direct responsibility for the killing on Wagner’s behalf and later suggested, without providing evidence, that foreign forces were behind the killing.

Wagner is officially registered in Russia as a “consulting company”

Britain’s Ministry of Defense said today that this mercenary company was officially registered in Russia as a legal entity, marking the rapid rise of an organization that for years kept its activities under a veil of secrecy.

Wagner described its business activities as “management consulting services,” in the filing it filed Dec. 27. No mention was made of her paramilitary activities.

It is not clear to what extent this registration will be used to manage the organization’s paramilitary activities.

Wagner currently commands up to 50,000 fighters in Ukraine and has become a “key element” in Russia’s war against its neighbor, the British ministry said.

Prigozhin may have funded the force in part from state money he received from government contracts at his other companies, the ministry added.

RES-EMP

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