Worldcrunch
After a sighting by a Ukrainian drone operator, details emerge of how the Russian mercenary group has been redeployed in the strategic Ukrainian city of Bakhmut it had helped conquer earlier this year. That was followed by the dramatic coup and departure from Ukraine led by Wagner’s now late leader Yevgeny Prigozhin.
After celebrated Wagner Group leader Yevgeny Prigozhin died in a plane crash, following his attempted coup against Russian President Vladimir Putin, some Wagner adherents are convinced Prigozhin is not dead. A video from Africa is adding fuel to the fire.
The post-coup mystery continues with reports that Wagner founder Yevgeny Prigozhin is not, in fact, in Belarus, but in Russia. A look at what it says about Vladimir Putin’s hold on power.
The Wagner mercenaries, who came to the world’s attention for their involvement in the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and more recently in the coup attempt, have been operating in Africa and elsewhere for years with a profitable formula to cash in on ongoing conflict.
July 3 – July 9, 2023
The excitement with which the West watched Prigozhin’s failed uprising reveals the delusional hopes that somehow a Russian white (or black) knight will come to overthrow Putin. No, there’s still only one way to be rid of him, argues Ukrainian writer Anna Akage.
Prigozhin’s brief insurrection will be watched closely in many African countries, where Wagner mercenaries have largely been the beachhead for Russian foreign policy. Keep an eye on a key African-Russian summit next month.
The aborted Wagner coup in Russia shows how a “war of all against all” might begin, and there are plenty of other militia factions opposed to the Kremlin, including separatist groups. Though it may appear to solve some big problems, including the war in Ukraine, history has shown that Russia exploding into civil war is unlikely to end well.
The owner of the Wagner mercenary group says he will refuse an order from Russia’s defense ministry to fold his fighters into the regular military — but it may be a sign that the Russian government finally wants to get rid of the increasingly powerful mercenary chief.
Even as Ukraine struggles to hold onto the last remaining bits of the eastern city, military experts say the official Russian military apparatus may have decided to rid itself of the Wagner mercenaries and bury them all in Bakhmut.
Many of the convicts that the Wagner Group mercenary outfit enlisted to fight in Ukraine are dead or missing, which has created a major recruitment problem for the paramilitary group headed by Putin confidante Yevgeny Prigozhin.
The Russian public is worried that waves of battle-hardened convicted murderers and rapists will soon be roaming the streets.
Putin used to keep his respectable and criminal circles of friends separate. But the increasing power of Yevgeny Prigozhin, a former prisoner and head of the Wagner paramilitary group, has many inside and outside the Kremlin worried.
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Volodymyr Zelensky’s suspension of two top security officials over treason allegations is a high-stakes five months into the war. Prosecutor General Iryna Venediktova and the head of the Security Service of Ukraine Ivan Bakanov face allegations of high treason and cooperation with Russia. Stay up-to-date with the latest on the Russia-Ukraine war, with our exclusive […]