US Senators Roger Wicker and Ben Cardin introduced the act, bipartisan legislation that would require the Secretary of State to designate the Russian-based PMC Wagner Group as a foreign terrorist organization (FTO).
A companion measure will also be introduced in the US House of Representatives.
“Vladimir Putin and his cronies will stop at nothing to accomplish their objectives, including employing mercenaries like the Wagner Group to commit atrocities on their behalf,” Senator Wickersaid. “The US should call this shadow army what it is: a foreign terrorist group. We must hold them accountable along with any who support them."“As Russia’s brutal war against Ukraine enters its ninth month, the United States must continue to remove the tools of destruction at its disposal,” said Senator Cardin, chairman of the US Helsinki Commission. “The Wagner Group has been credibly linked to countless atrocities in Ukraine as well as Syria and across the African continent. The US must immediately designate the Wagner Group as a foreign terrorist organization. Doing so will diminish the strength of the Russian armed forces and help hold human rights violators accountable.”
