US Official Talks About "Defection" in Russian Army, Moscow Denies

A senior official in the US Department of Defense told Sky News Arabia that in the past hours, US intelligence agencies had monitored the defection of large numbers of Russian soldiers from their military leaders and their joining the Wagner movement, which Moscow hastened to deny.

The official, who asked not to be named because he is not authorized to talk about the issue publicly, added that the operations carried out by "Wagner" are widely supported by Russian soldiers and officers deployed inside Ukraine as well as in Russian territory and bases near the Ukrainian border.

In response to a question about whether Wagner had the military capabilities to reach Moscow, the official said that all possibilities are possible, stressing that "we have to monitor the movements of the senior generals in the Russian Ministry of Defense in the coming hours to know the course of the Wagner movement."

According to the Pentagon's assessment, the "Wagner" combat groups include about fifty to sixty thousand members, and they are equipped with heavy and advanced military machinery and equipment.