Yevgeny Prigozhin, the unpredictable head of the Russian Wagner mercenary militia

The conflict in Ukraine allowed the unpredictable chief of the Wagner paramilitary group, Yevgeny Prigozhinto impose himself as a figure in the foreground in Russiabut his call to rebel against the General Staff of the regular army threatens to cut short his takeoff.

The 62-year-old volcanic billionaire, with a shaved head and tough features, accused Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu on Friday of having ordered the bombing of bases in Wagner in the rear of the Ukrainian front, killing a “Big number” of mercenaries.

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Prigozhin promised “curb” to the military command of MoscowHe recalled that he has “25,000” combatants at his disposal and called on “everyone who wants” to join his troops to “end disorder.”

Shortly after, he clarified that his intention was not to carry out “a coup d’état”, but to lead a “march for justice”.

This clarification did not seem to convince the Russian security services (FSB)who opened an investigation against him for “calling for an armed riot”, a charge that could result in a long prison sentence.

But nothing is certain in life Prigozhinconsummate master of provocation and unexpected turns.

“You still have to understand what is happening”says the independent Russian analyst Tatiana Stanovaia, who considers it likely that the authorities “try to leave out of the game Prigozhin”, which would have involuntarily lent itself to that game.

“For him FSB and the Mayor stateThis is a godsend. As minimum, Prigozhin He’s going to get hit”.

Posing on the front line

In May of this year, he achieved his consecration by claiming the conquest of the city of bakhmut (east), one of the few victories of the Russian forces, after months of fierce fighting.

But during the battle of bakhmut Tensions with the General Staff increased. Prigozhin he accuses the military of skimping on ammunition and posts videos insulting Russian commanders.

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An unimaginable attitude for any other individual in Russiawhere severe repression prevails.

During years, Prigozhin he did shadow work for the Kremlin sending mercenaries from his private group, Wagner, to theaters of conflict in the Middle East and Africa, always denying any involvement.

The strategy changed with the beginning of the conflict of Ukrainein February 2022. Its public irruption began in September, when the Russian army suffered serious and humiliating setbacks.

Prigozhin is introduced for the first time as the founder of Wagnera militia that since 2014 has fought in Ukraine, Syria and in African countries.

In October, it sets up its offices in a luxury glass building in St. Petersburg and begins to recruit thousands of men in Russian prisons.

The offer made to the convicts was to fight in exchange for amnesty. With a caveat: deserters and those who allowed themselves to be captured would be executed.

When a video circulated of an alleged Wagner defector being executed with a sledgehammer, Prigozhin He did not hesitate to praise the crime and describe the executed man as a “dog”.

“Don’t drink too much, don’t take drugs, don’t rape anyone”He also told a group of prisoners who had fought for six months and regained their freedom.

Unlike Russian generals, criticized for not attending battles in person, Prigozhin He gladly poses with his mercenaries supposedly on the front line.

At the beginning of the year, he posted a message from the cockpit of an SU-24 fighter and challenged the Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky to an aerial duel.

“If you want, we’ll see you in the air. If you win, you take (Bajmut)”.

Own Prigozhin He was imprisoned in Russia for nearly a decade at the end of the Soviet era, then became a hot dog vendor in St. Petersburg, before rising to rub shoulders with the upper echelons as a hotelier.

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Source: Elcomercio

jack

I am Jack Morton and I work in 24 News Recorder. I mostly cover world news and I have also authored 24 news recorder. I find this work highly interesting and it allows me to keep up with current events happening around the world.