Yevgeny Prigozhin announced that he will transfer the positions of his mercenaries of the “Wagner” PMC from the city of Bakhmut to the “Kadyrovs” – the troops of the head of the Chechen Republic Ramzan Kadyrov, subordinate to the Russian Armed Forces, the press service of the leader of Wagner reports, citing “Ukrainian Pravda”.

The new statement comes after Prigozhin filmed himself with dozens of corpses of his soldiers on Friday, criticizing the Russian military leadership more than ever for not providing him with enough ammunition. Later, he announced that from May 10, “Wagner” would withdraw from the battle for Bakhmut “to lick its wounds.”

What Prigozhin says in a new message:

“I am grateful to Ramzan Akhmatovich [Kadîrov] because he agreed to take our position in Bakhmut, most likely with the ability to get everything he needed and all the resources he needed.

I am already in contact with his representatives to immediately begin the transfer of positions so that on May 10 at 00:00, just when we estimate that our combat potential will be fully exhausted, our combat comrades will lead us to deploy and continue the assault on the city of Bakhmut.”

The announcement came after Kadyrov released a video on Friday in which he said he was ready to replace Wagner’s fighters if they pulled out.

“If the elder brother Prigozhin and Wagner leave Bakhmut, the General Staff will lose an experienced combat unit, and the younger brother Kadyrov will come to Bakhmut in his place. If the scenario is like this, then our fighters are ready to advance and occupy the city. It’s a matter of a few hours,” Kadyrov said.

The decision by Yevhen Prigozhin, the mercenary leader of the “Wagner” PMC, to withdraw from Bakhmut on May 10 could be a “turning point” in the battle for the eastern Ukrainian city, the spokesperson of the Ukrainian military said.