https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wagner_Group
The Wagner Group (Группа Вагнера, officially known as “PMC Wagner”/ЧВК «Вагнер») is a (Pro-Russia) PMC participating in the Ukraine war on behalf of Pro-Russia forces, it was co-founded by Neo-Nazi Dmitry Utkin and Russian oligarch Yevgeny Prigozhin and has participated in several foreign wars on behalf of Russia.
The mutiny began with the takeover of Rostov-on-Don, a city near the Ukrainian border, and continuing with a convoy heading towards Moscow, Utkin was reported by some to be leading the convoy.
The convoy passed the halfway point between Rostov and Moscow, the region of Voronezh but ultimately Prigozhin announced that the convoy had been stopped 200km from Moscow and was heading back to base, by this point the mutiny had been mostly bloodless with little resistance to the mutiny by regular Russian forces, but Prigozhin stated that there was a risk of bloodshed if the attempt to take Moscow went ahead.
It’s likely that Wagner backed down from the coup attempt after realising Moscow would resist and that Wagner didn’t have the resources to succeed in a battle for the city, but although the group failed in their takeover they ultimately showed 2 vulnerabilities of the Kremlin:
- An inability or unwillingness of Russian forces to defend much of their territory against rebels
- The disloyalty of some volunteer groups towards the Russian establishment
The Russian government later announced that Wagner soldiers who didn’t participate in the mutiny would be given contracts with the Russian Army, while Prigozhin would leave in exile to Belarus, with charges against the mutineers being dropped, Prigozhin later died in a plane crash (presented by the Russian government as an aviation accident and by supporters of Wagner as an assassination, either caused by the plane being shot down or a bomb being detonated on board) and the Wagner Group was integrated into the Russian National Guard.
The PMC also has ties to Rusich Group, which publicly supported the failed Wagner mutiny attempt1.
**PMC “Wagner” began to merge into the structure of the Russian Guard. Recruiters are recruiting the first detachment
**Former militants of the Wagner PMC were offered to sign a contract with a new mercenary unit as part of the Russian Guard. Information about this appeared in the chats of relatives of PMC fighters, but was later deleted. As the administrator of the PMC group explained to Important Stories, clarifications will be made to the post.
Recruitment is open to those who have not previously participated in the war in Ukraine, as well as people who have not served in the army and people with HIV and hepatitis. In addition, **the new division of the Russian Guard is ready to consider candidates for amputees “on an individual basis.”
**A PMC recruiter told Important Stories that he represents “the only detachment that has an official agreement with the Russian Guard.” The training base of the new detachment is the village of Cossack Camps in the Rostov region. The conditions are the same as in Wagner.
The State Duma approved amendments on the creation of “volunteer formations” as part of the Russian Guard, thanks to which units of the Wagner PMC can enter there. Negotiations on the transfer of mercenaries to the Russian Guard were conducted by Yevgeny Prigozhin’s son Pavel (his only heir) and the commander of the Wagner PMC Anton (Lotus) Elizarov .
Interesting Links
- https://dossier.center/utkin
- https://en.respublica.lt/signs-of-neo-nazi-ideology-amongst-russian-mercenaries
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