War in Ukraine: MEPs call for Wagner to be listed as an EU terrorist group

The National Assembly voted on Tuesday, May 9 in favor of a text calling for the inclusion of the Russian paramilitary group Wagner, accused of abuses in Ukraine and Africa, on the European Union's list of terrorist organizations.

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The motion for a resolution tabled by Renaissance MP Benjamin Haddad, without binding value, targets in particular the "numerous abuses against the civilian population" in Ukraine, committed by this group of mercenaries, some of which could be qualified as "war crimes". The text was co-signed by deputies from the different groups of the majority, but also by elected representatives from the ranks of socialists, ecologists and LR, a harbinger of a favorable vote in the hemicycle.

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'Political, symbolic message'

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It is a question of sending a political, symbolic message, a signal of denunciation of Wagner and his activities - which deliberately target civilians for political gain - as terrorism, "said Benjamin Haddad.

The text quotes the German intelligence services, according to which Wagner "took part in the summary executions, mutilations and acts of torture committed against civilians in the Ukrainian locality of Butcha".

For its part, the EU added Wagner to its list of individuals and entities sanctioned for "active participation in the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine".