The private military company Wagner (PMC) or mercenary force was conceived by the Kremlin in 2013 as an instrument of deniable power projection and was an integral part of Russian foreign operations for nine years. Under the leadership of Yevgeny Prigozhin, it was first deployed during the undeclared war of 2014 in the Donbass region of Ukraine, then played a key role in the Russian intervention in the Syrian civil war from 2015, and expanded its activities to six African countries and even Venezuela. However, it became most infamous as one of the main combat forces in President Putin's invasion of Ukraine in 2022, before shocking the world with an armed mutiny in June 2023. In this account, expert on modern Russia Mark Galeotti examines the Wagner Group's decades-long career, tracing how it came into being, the actions it has carried out worldwide, and the events and motivations associated with its revolt and subsequent disbanding. This important analysis is interspersed with battle orders, units and actions, as well as profiles of all key figures, and is supplemented by rare photographs and eight newly commissioned art panels.
Group
Books (first-hand)
Author
Galeotti, Mark/Shumate, Johnny (Illustr.)
Title
Putin's Mercenaries, 2013–24. The Wagner Group and other Russian PMCs
Details
English text, paperback, many colour photos, colour illustrations in plates. 64 pages.
