Russian mercenary leader complains of critical ammunition shortage in battle of Bakhmut

The founder of Russia's Wagner mercenary force has said his troops now tightening their grip on the Ukrainian city of Bakhmut are being deprived of ammunition and that, if they are forced to retreat, the entire front will collapse.

Yevgeny Prigozhin had said on Friday that his units had "practically surrounded Bakhmut," where fighting has intensified in the past week after months of attritional warfare, with Russian forces attacking from three sides.

Wagner often appears to operate autonomously from the regular army, or even in competition with it, and in a video published over the weekend, Prigozhin complained that the ammunition that Moscow had promised it had not been delivered.

"If Wagner retreats from Bakhmut now, the whole front will collapse," Prigozhin said. "The situation will not be sweet for all military formations protecting Russian interests."

Reuters could not independently verify when and where the video was recorded. It was published not on Prigozhin's usual press service Telegram channel, but on one that has associated itself with Wagner and disseminated news about Prigozhin.

On his usual channel, Prigozhin also mentioned the lack of ammunition, saying on Sunday: "For now, we are trying to figure out the reason: Is it just ordinary bureaucracy, or a betrayal?"

Prigozhin regularly criticizes the military hierarchy and last month accused Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu and others of "treason" for withholding munitions. Shoigu has been visiting forces in Ukraine to award medals and meet commanders and on Monday was in the eastern city of Mariupol, captured by Russian forces last year after a months-long siege.

In the nearly four-minute video published on the Wagner Orchestra Telegram channel on Saturday, Prigozhin said his troops were worried that Moscow wanted to set them up as potential scapegoats if Russia lost the war.

"If we retreat, then we will go down in history forever as people who have taken the main step towards losing the war," he said.

"This is exactly the problem with 'ammunition hunger'."

WATCH | Canadian soldiers train Ukrainian troops:

Prigozhin delivered his monologue in what appeared to be a bunker, with a dim light casting his heavy shadow on the wall behind him.

He said his troops would wonder whether they were being "set up" for defeat by the top brass or even someone "higher."

Russian nationalist ex-rebel commander Igor Girkin, a prominent opponent of Prigozhin's, said without citing evidence that the doom-laden video published on the weekend had been recorded at the height of that row, about two weeks ago.