Canada's parliament adopts motion to mark Russia's Wagner Group as terrorist entity

As the war between Russia and Ukraine continues to take a more brutal turn, the Canadian Parliament on Tuesday voted to mark Russia’s mercenary Wagner Group as a terrorist entity. This development came after the United States designated the Wagner Group as a significant transnational criminal organization.

Reports suggest that Wagner has played a major role in the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, is responsible for deploying troops to kill Ukrainian leaders, and has widely recruited prisoners and convicts for frontline combat.

Canadian parliament adopts motion to mark Russia's Wagner Group as terrorist entity

Notably, the Canadian government has now added the Wagner Group to the sanctions list under the Special Economic Measures Act. The motion was presented by NDP lawmaker Heather McPherson and received unanimous consent. It asks the Liberal government to "immediately designate" the group as a terrorist entity.

"Given reports of human rights abuses and attacks on civilians in Ukraine and other parts of the world by the Russian-supported Wagner Group, the House calls upon the government to immediately designate the Wagner Group as a terrorist entity," McPherson’s motion reads, as reported by The Kyiv Independent.

US slaps sanctions on Chinese company for helping Wagner group in Ukraine war

According to a statement released by the US Department of the Treasury on Thursday, the United States imposed sanctions on a Chinese company for sending satellite imagery orders from locations in Ukraine to Russia’s Wagner Group.

"As sanctions and export controls on Russia from our international coalition continue to bite, the Kremlin is desperately searching for arms and support, including through the brutal Wagner Group, to continue its unjust war against Ukraine," said Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen. "Today’s expanded sanctions on Wagner, as well as new sanctions on their associates and other companies enabling the Russian military complex, will further impede Putin’s ability to arm and equip his war machine," she added.

What is the Wagner Group?

Wagner Group is also known as PMC Wagner, which means "Private Military Company." It is a Russian paramilitary force and a network of mercenaries that works as the private army of Russian President Vladimir Putin. Reports indicate that the organisation does not follow any Russian laws and is not ideologically driven. The Wagner group is also viewed as neo-Nazis and far-right extremists.

The Wagner Group gained limelight during the war in Donbass in Ukraine, where it reportedly helped separatist forces of the self-declared Donetsk and Luhansk People's Republics from 2014 to 2015. Also, members of the group have been found actively taking part in the various conflicts around the world—including the civil wars in Syria, Libya, the Central African Republic (CAR), and Mali—often fighting on the side of forces that support the Russian regime.

Image: AP