Wagner Group of Mercenaries

What’s in today’s article?

• Why in news?
• News Summary: Wagner Group of mercenaries
• What would the Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) designation mean for the Wagner Group?
• What is the Wagner Group?
• Why is the Biden administration not designating the Wagner Group as FTO?

Why in News?

• Tensions are escalating between the US President Joe Biden’s administration and the US Congress as they debate over designating the Wagner Group as a terrorist organisation.
• Wagner Group is a shadowy private militia, believed to be fighting for Russia against Ukraine in the ongoing battle between the two countries.

News Summary: Wagner Group of mercenaries

• A fight is brewing between US Congress and President Biden over whether to designate as a terrorist organization the private Russian military company Wagner.
  • Wagner is on the front lines of aggression against Ukraine and accused of heinous atrocities there and across the world.
• The Biden administration has sanctioned the Wagner group as a global criminal organization.
• However, lawmakers are pushing the State Department to go further by imposing the foreign terrorist designation.
  • A group of lawmakers are trying to pass legislation known as the Holding Accountable Russian Mercenaries (HARM) Act.
  • This act would require the US State Department to label the Wagner Group as a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO).

What would the Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) designation mean for the Wagner Group?

• FTO is a designation for non-US organisations that are deemed to be involved in terrorist activities.
• Under the US Immigration and Nationality Act, the Secretary of State can designate an organisation as a foreign terrorist organisation.
• Once an organisation is labelled as an FTO, it is unlawful for a person in the United States or subject to the jurisdiction of the United States to knowingly provide material support or resources to it.
• The funds of an FTO gets frozen and reported to the Office of Foreign Assets Control of the US Department of the Treasury.

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What is the Wagner Group?

• The Wagner Group first surfaced during Russia’s annexation of Crimea in 2014.
• Essentially a network of contractors that supply soldiers for hire, the group isn’t registered anywhere and its source of funding remains unknown.
• Apart from Ukraine, Wagner Group is reportedly also active in West Asia and several countries in Africa.
• Most recently, the organisation was accused of being involved in the massacres, rape, and torture of civilians in Ukraine’s Bucha that took place in March 2022.

Why is the Biden administration not designating the Wagner Group as FTO?

• The Biden administration it believes that the move could impede US efforts to convince and work with African nations to end their associations with or dependency on Wagner.
  • The organisation is operating in several countries, such as Sudan, Libya, the Central African Republic, etc. and provides assistance to those nations that have weak militaries.
• The sudden imposition of the designation would mean that the government officials of those African countries, which deal with the group, would be immediately banned from travelling to the US.
• Moreover, their assets would also be seized, according to the law. Hence, it is reluctant to label Wagner Group as FTO.

Q1) What are mercenaries?

 Mercenaries are individuals or groups of soldiers who are hired by a government, private military company, or other entity to fight in armed conflicts. They are typically motivated by financial gain rather than ideology or loyalty to a particular cause.

Q2) What is US Immigration and Nationality Act? 

The Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) is a federal law in the United States that governs immigration to the country. It was first enacted in 1952 and has been amended several times since then. The INA establishes the legal basis for immigration to the United States, including rules for eligibility, admission, and naturalization. It also sets out various categories of visas for temporary and permanent residence in the United States, as well as rules for family-based and employment-based immigration.

Source: Wagner Group of mercenaries: Why Joe Biden and US Congress are at odds over designating it a ‘terrorist’ group | The Hill