The head of the Wagner Military Group called on Wednesday for Russian citizens to be allowed to criticize senior military leaders, after the Russian parliament passed a law toughening penalties for defaming forces fighting in Ukraine.

And on Tuesday, Russian lawmakers approved a law that includes harsh prison sentences for people who criticize even mercenaries, a measure that previously only applied to the regular army.

Wagner's boss, Yevgeny Prigozhin, said Wednesday that people should have the freedom to express their opinions, and only ordinary soldiers are above any criticism.

He added on Telegram, "I believe that the anti-defamation law should not apply to the staff of the command, that is, me, the Minister of Defense and other commanders who commit or could commit mistakes during a special military operation," referring to the Russian invasion.

And he continued, "Society must say what it deems necessary about them," noting that "only the soldier is sacred. Therefore, the soldiers must be left alone."

And Prigozhin, an ally of President Vladimir Putin, suffers from problems with the Russian Defense Ministry, as he claimed victory on the battlefield against the Russian army and accused the ministry of not supplying him with the required ammunition.

Prigozhin stressed that he had not "defamed" anyone, saying "I am only telling the truth" and that his statements were vetted by his lawyers before being published.

"Of course anyone can be imprisoned, even me," he added.

"But in this case, we must not forget that 146 million Russians could also go to jail, and this does not lead anywhere," he warned.

Sanctioned by Washington and Brussels, Prigozhin had been operating in the shadows for years, but has been in the spotlight since the start of the offensive in Ukraine.

The leader of the mercenary group sought to show that his forces were more efficient than the Russian army.