However, since the start of the war in Ukraine, several European countries accelerated or increased their defence budget, notably Germany, Poland and the Netherlands. The lack of public support for full scale military engagements and the trend of shrinking defence budget are key factors that contribute to an increasing use of proxies. States mainly use proxy actors, which can consist of local militias, rebel groups, designated terrorist groups or PMSCs, to exert influence and pursue their strategic objectives in a foreign conflict, while avoiding the financial and human costs of a direct involvement of their own military. The proliferation of proxy actors and Wagner in conflict-affected countries This perspective will provide a short background to the Wagner Group, the impact for (countering) terrorism, and shed some light on accountability deficit and implications of a possible designation as a terrorist group. Currently, the US is considering designating the Kremlin-backed Wagner Group. In November 2022, the European Parliament took a step further by adopting a resolution urging the European Council to place Wagner on the terrorist list. Several countries have expressed concerns over Russia’s infamous Wagner Group, which has been repeatedly accused of human rights violations in countries where it operates, with the United States (US), the United Kingdom (UK), and the EU having notably issued sanctions against the group and its owner Yevgeny Prigozhin. In recent years, the Wagner Group (henceforth also Wagner) has significantly increased its footprint not only in Ukraine, Syria, Libya, Sudan, Central African Republic (CAR), Mozambique, but also more recently in Mali. While the phenomenon is not new, the scale at which mercenaries and private military and security companies (PMSCs) actors are engaging in contemporary armed conflicts and counter-terrorism contexts is alarming.
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