The short-lived mutiny against Russia led by Yevgeny Prigozhin, the chief of the Wagner Group is the most significant challenge to Russian President Vladimir Putin during his more than two decades in power.
PBS NewsHour’s Stephanie Sy spoke to Candace Rondeaux, senior director for the Future Frontlines program at New America, to learn more about the leader of the private military group that has led the fighting in parts of Russia’s war on Ukraine.
“He served a 10-year sentence for violent crimes that he committed in St. Petersburg as a young man,” Rondeaux said. “He worked in hard labor camps. And when he came out, he kind of transformed himself into this kind of mafia entrepreneur.”
Prigozhin had been feuding with Russia’s military brass throughout the war in Ukraine, leading the mercenary leader to order his troops to seize a military headquarters in a southern Russian city and march toward Moscow. But, after less than 24 hours, Prigozhin ordered an about-face to avoid “shedding Russian blood.”
Prigozhin defended his staged rebellion in an audio statement, claiming he was responding to an attack on his forces.
The Kremlin said it’s made a deal where Prigozhin would move to Belarus. But, questions remain about how the rebellion will impact the war and Putin’s political future and what role the Wagner Group would play in all that.
Click the link in our bio for more. This post was produced and edited by Tim McPhillips, Yasmeen Alamiri, Julia Griffin and Steff Staples.
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