Dolvich, Ivav Russia's Wagner Group

From Ukraine to Military Coups, the Story of a Mercenary Army by one of its Senior Commanders

The Wagner mercenary group remained relatively unknown for years, and it was only after the start of the large-scale invasion of Ukraine that the public learned of the existence of this mysterious organisation. But years before that, it had been operating unhindered in Africa and the Middle East, fighting in conflicts for Russia, protecting dictators and waging war against anyone declared an enemy of the Russian government. Many journalists have tried to uncover Wagner's secrets, but for the first time we hear the voice of an actual Wagner commander who participated in some of the organisation's operations. He is Igor Salikov, a former Wagner commander and the highest-ranking Russian military officer to testify before the International Criminal Court in The Hague against the Russian regime and its crimes in Ukraine. Igor Salikov was not only a soldier but also a high-ranking commander, which gave him unique insight into Wagner's organisation, structure, political goals and operational procedures. The author witnessed the group's formation and its first operations in Syria, where the first battle between US forces and Russians since the end of the Cold War took place in 2018. Wagner later invaded other countries and was one of the Russian armed forces' most important resources in the war against Ukraine. In 2022, after the failure of the first invasion of Ukraine, Wagner's leader was ordered to recruit directly from prisons, and convicted rapists, murderers and other criminals joined the once small elite mercenary force. In 2023, Wagner mercenaries attempted to organise a coup against Vladimir Putin, but changed their minds at the last moment. Shortly afterwards, the group's leaders were killed in a plane crash, and Wagner disappeared from the spotlight. This book allows us to see this group through the eyes of someone who was there, who went through it all and witnessed the entire history of the Wagner organisation from its beginnings to its ignominious end.