By Matt Murphy
BBC News

A former commander with the Russian paramilitary Wagner Group has claimed asylum in Norway after deserting from the mercenary outfit.
Andrey Medvedev, 26, crossed the border into Norway last Friday, where he was detained by border guards


He is currently being held in the Oslo area where he faces charges of illegal entry to Norway, his lawyer Brynjulf Risnes told the BBC.
Mr Risnes said his client left Wagner after witnessing war crimes in Ukraine.
The Norwegian Border Guard confirmed to the BBC that a Russian man had been detained after crossing the country's 198km (123miles) long border with Russia, but said it could not comment further for "reasons of security and privacy".
Tarjei Sirma-Tellefsen, police chief of staff in the Norwegian region of Finnmark, said a man had been detained by a border patrol and said he had applied for asylum

But the Russian human rights group Gulagu, who helped Mr Medvedev leave Russia, confirmed his identity. His escape is believed to be the first known instance of one of the group's soldiers defecting to the West.

[b]Gulagu's founder Vladimir Osechkin told the BBC that Mr Medvedev had joined the paramilitary group in July 2022 on a four-month contract, but had deserted after witnessing a host of human rights abuses and war crimes while serving in Ukraine.
He said that Mr Medvedev is a former soldier in the Russian army and that he later served time in prison between 2017 and 2018 before joining the Wagner Group

He was placed in charge of a Wagner division in Ukraine, where the mercenary group supplied him with around 30-40 troops every week, Mr Osechkin said.
In a video posted by Gulagu to its social media channels, Mr Medvedev said he fled Ukraine in November after being informed that the group intended to extend his contract indefinitely.[/b]

After spending two months underground in Russia, he crossed the border into Norway last week.
Mr Risnes said his client had also witnessed a host of war crimes while fighting in Ukraine, including seeing "deserters being executed" by the Wagner Group's internal security service.
"In short he felt betrayed and wanted to leave as soon as possible," Mr Risnes said.
He added that he believed Mr Medvedev had taken some evidence of war crimes with him to Norway and that he intends to share his information with groups investigating war crimes in the coming weeks
.
In response to the allegations, the founder of the Wagner Group, Yevgeny Prigozhin, confirmed that Mr Medvedev was a former Wagner soldier.
But in a press release issued by one of his companies, he said Mr Medvedev held Norwegian citizenship and had led a battalion of soldiers from the Scandinavian nation


Mr Prigozhin also accused him of "mistreatment of prisoners" and said that his former employee was "very dangerous". Mr Risnes told the BBC that Mr Prigozhin's claims were not true.
UK officials believe the Wagner Group makes up about 10% of Russia's forces in Ukraine, and played a significant part in helping Moscow's forces take the town of Soledar in eastern Donbas region last week.
Thousands of its troops have been recruited from Russian prisons. Mr Prigozhin - a former convict himself - has promised recruits their freedom in exchange for six months service in Ukraine.
Before the invasion of Ukraine, it had only a few thousand mercenaries. Most were believed to be experienced former soldiers, including some from Russia's elite regiments and special forces.
Since 2015, it is believed to have deployed troops to Syria, Libya, Mali and the Central African Republic.

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-64296979

Alright!

Lol.

'Special Military Operation' will become another Soviet invasion of Afghanistan.

Thank you BBC... for the lack of propaganda and fake news.

Puti himself will soon seek asylum in China.

Messi1:
Puti himself will soon seek asylum in China.

Lolz

Putards please come and tell us that this is a propaganda

topcatking:
Thank you BBC... for the lack of propaganda and fake news.

News Brought to you by BBC...
The home of propaganda!

caye:


News Brought to you by BBC...
The home of propaganda!

Instead of you to research and be informed, even the owner and founder of the wanger group has reacted,
Even a fool when he is quiet is deem wise, but the moment he speaks, he removes all doubt..

obedience4:


Instead of you to research and be informed, even the owner and founder of the wanger group has reacted,
Even a fool when he is quiet is deem wise, but the moment he speaks, he removes all doubt..

all they do is shout propaganda like programmed zombie yet the clowns call people slaves when they are d real pootin slaves

obedience4:


Instead of you to research and be informed, even the owner and founder of the wanger group has reacted,
Even a fool when he is quiet is deem wise, but the moment he speaks, he removes all doubt..

all they do is shout propaganda like programmed zombie yet the clowns call people slaves when they are d real pootin slaves .

caye:


News Brought to you by BBC...
The home of propaganda!

I see we are on the same page.

Messi1:
Puti himself will soon seek asylum in China.

topcatking:


I see we are on the same page.

caye:


News Brought to you by BBC...
The home of propaganda!

You Putin fan boys are like zombies with your shouting propaganda upandan Nairaland.

China (SCMP), India (Wion) and Aljazeera (Arab) media houses are all reporting the news.

Just passing by.

Russia hoped Europe would freeze this winter without gas.
Instead:
- Gas prices in Europe fell to pre-war levels
- Europe didn't collapse and freeze
- Germany got rid of its dependence on Russian gas
- No mass protests against price increases
- Russia oil now seeking for less than $55 a barrel. Cap set is $60 a barrel.

Putin, the brilliant strategist. Lol

opamoses1:




You Putin fan boys are like zombies with your shouting propaganda upandan Nairaland.

China (SCMP), India (Wion) and Aljazeera (Arab) media houses are all reporting the news.

Unfortunately, you NEVER knew that media outfits like:-
Aljazeera
Japan Today
Wion
Moscow Times etc

...are all owned and financed by CIA-connections; they are not owned wholly by the indigenous peoples of the specified countries, and their policies are bent/ biased towards a certain direction.

If for instance you are told : BBC Yoruba ( forget that you know the meaning of BBC), you would think that it is being run and financed by Yoruba's because you see and hear Yoruba faves and voices. In actuality, it is being run by Caucasians. Thats the power of the media.
Propaganda is a strong tool in warfare called psychological warfare.

Ask about 9/11 and Afghanistan war ( if you were born pre-2001). The rallying battle cry had been going on since 1999 by the media. CNN, fox news, BBC had since been putting out fears of a group called Al-qaeda, and the need to wage a global war against them, designating them a global terrorist organisation.
It was a lie. There was no global Al-qaeda. They were being trained and sponsored for the new Amerikkan century. And the media were the tools being used for that operation.
Many innocent and foolish lower and middle class Americans signed up for the war because of the media propaganda.

USA fake news

They want to beg the unit to defect lol.

Kingsnairaland:
USA fake news

They want to beg the unit to defect lol.

Even you, a simple search will help you,
Even the head of Wagner has reacted, please before you scream fake news, research so you don't make a .... Of yourself

caye:


Unfortunately, you NEVER knew that media outfits like:-
Aljazeera
Japan Today
Wion
Moscow Times etc

...are all owned and financed by CIA-connections; they are not owned wholly by the indigenous peoples of the specified countries, and their policies are bent/ biased towards a certain direction.

If for instance you are told : BBC Yoruba ( forget that you know the meaning of BBC), you would think that it is being run and financed by Yoruba's because you see and hear Yoruba faves and voices. In actuality, it is being run by Caucasians. Thats the power of the media.
Propaganda is a strong tool in warfare called psychological warfare.

Ask about 9/11 and Afghanistan war ( if you were born pre-2001). The rallying battle cry had been going on since 1999 by the media. CNN, fox news, BBC had since been putting out fears of a group called Al-qaeda, and the need to wage a global war against them, designating them a global terrorist organisation.
It was a lie. There was no global Al-qaeda. They were being trained and sponsored for the new Amerikkan century. And the media were the tools being used for that operation.
Many innocent and foolish lower and middle class Americans signed up for the war because of the media propaganda.

What all load of rubbish you just wrote,
Give me proof that the CIA runs those network you wrote,
I know you have no proof,you will just wake up and start writing rubbish