Russian Lawmakers Working Out Bill to Regulate Private Military Companies' Activity

On Saturday, PMC Wagner chief Evgeny Prigozhin confirmed that his forces had halted their attempt to reach Moscow in order to "sort out" the Russian Defense Ministry’s top brass over an alleged missile attack on Wagner positions.

State Duma (Russia’s Lower House) Defense Committee head Andrey Kartapolov has told Russian media that his panel is working out a bill on regulating activities by private military companies (PMCs).

When asked if the document could be prepared and passed in the near future, the lawmaker said that he and his colleagues “are working on it."

He also noted that it is too early to speak about prospects of PMC Wagner in light of latest developments.

The remarks followed the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) on Saturday opening a criminal case against head of PMC Wagner Yevgeny Prigozhin for inciting armed mutiny after he accused the Russian military of launching a strike against a Wagner camp, even though the country’s Ministry of Defense denied his allegations.

Shortly after, a contingent of Wagner forces seized control of several administrative buildings in the southern Russian city of Rostov-on-Don and started marching upon Moscow in a bid to "sort out" the Russian Defense Ministry’s top brass over an alleged missile attack on Wagner positions.

Russian President Vladimir Putin delivered a televised address to the nation on Saturday in which he described the actions of PMC Wagner as an armed mutiny and treason, pledging tough measures against the insurgents.

Later that day, the Belarusian presidential office said that Prigozhin had accepted Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko's proposal to stop the movement of Wagner troops in Russia and take further steps to de-escalate the situation. Prigozhin later confirmed the information, saying that the Wagner troops will return to their field camps.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov then told reporters that the criminal case against Prigozhin had been lifted and that he would leave for Belarus under guarantees given by Putin. The spokesman added that the members of Wagner PMC who were involved in Saturday's events would not be prosecuted, given their distinguished service during Russia's ongoing special military operation in Ukraine.