The Wagner group continues to fight in front of Bachmut.
Meanwhile, mercenary chief Prigozhin is giving an interview - and may have imitated Vladimir Putin.
Bakhmut - Yevgeny Prigozhin, head of the Wagner private army, gained influence in the Ukraine war.
His band of mercenaries are fighting to capture the eastern Ukrainian city of Bakhmut.
Prigozhin repeatedly criticizes the warfare of the Russian army and thus positions himself against Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Now he has given an interview to the Russian state media in which Prigozhin unexpectedly presents himself in a very similar way to Putin.
The pictures in particular cause frowns: The head of the Wagner group sat at a table opposite the interviewees of the state television channel Russia Today and the Russian state news agencies FNA and Ria Novosti.
Prigozhin's eyes are wide open, his facial expressions rigid.
The body language of "Putin's chef" was reminiscent of that of the Kremlin boss.
"During the interview, Prigozhin appeared to be mimicking the way Vladimir Putin has himself photographed in public appearances," the US think tank Institute for the Study of War (ISW) also noted.
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The Wagner boss Jegweni Prigozhin.
© IMAGO / ITAR-TASS
In an interview, Prigozhin presented himself as Putin did - to "mock" the Kremlin boss?
Such an interview setting is unusual for Prigozhin.
Normally, the Wagner boss can be filmed on the battlefield during the Ukraine war.
In wide angle.
These videos are probably intended to be dynamic and dark.
The ISW experts consider the background of the latest media appearance of "Putin's cook" to be "unique".
According to her assessment, Prigozhin presented himself in a similar way to the Kremlin boss in his interview, "either to mock Putin or to subtly hint that Prigozhin could become Russian president like Putin".
Prigozchin: The Wagner boss wants to further increase his influence in Moscow
It's no secret that Prigozhin wants to further increase his influence in Moscow.
In mid-March, the analysts at the ISW wrote that the Wagner boss could transform his private mercenary force into an "ideological elite parallel military organization" after taking Bahmut, which would then be on a par with the Russian army.
Shortly before, Prigozhin had announced in a video that he wanted to run against Volodymyr Zelenskyy and his predecessor Petro Poroshenko in the 2024 Ukrainian presidential elections.
The video cannot be independently verified for authenticity.
The ISW called Prigozhin's announcement that he wanted to become Ukraine's president "sarcastic" and pointed out that he could rather position himself for the presidential elections in Russia in the background.
These are also planned for 2024.
Putin's circle of power in the Kremlin - the confidants of the Russian President
Putin's circle of power in the Kremlin - the confidants of the Russian President
No ammunition, phone lines cut: Prigozhin repeats accusations against the Kremlin and contradicts Putin's most important war narrative
In his conversation with Russian state media, Prigozhin did not raise the issue of presidential elections.
He reiterated his accusations against the Russian authorities that the Kremlin is deliberately preventing the group from capturing Wagner Bakhmut.
For weeks, Prigozhin has complained that his armed forces are being deprived of ammunition and that all telephone lines in the Kremlin are down.
The Wagner boss also contradicted Putin's war propaganda on an important point: Prigozhin doubted that Russia was fighting NATO and a Ukrainian neo-Nazi regime in the Ukraine war.
"We only fight against Ukrainians."
Whatever Prigozhin wanted to say with his recent media appearance: Whether he wanted to parody Putin and thus attack the Kremlin again, or whether he wanted to hint at his own ambitions for a presidency.
The ISW analysts are certain "that Prigozhin has greater political ambitions in Russia."
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List of rubrics: © IMAGO / ITAR-TASS