What is Wagner, the Phantom Army of Moscow

2023-05-11 14:49:00

NEWS IN A NUTSHELL. The National Assembly passed a resolution calling for the inclusion of the Russian paramilitary group on the EU list of terrorist organizations.

By Leo Rougagnou

The Wagner Organization was created by Dmitri Utkin, a former Russian intelligence agent, and the oligarch Yevgueni Prigojine, who heads it.
© OLGA MALTSEVA / AFP

Published on 05/11/2023 at 2:49 p.m.

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Crhymes of war, crimes against humanity. So many accusations against the Wagner militia. MEPs voted unanimously on Tuesday, May 9, 2023 for a resolution calling for the inclusion of the Russian paramilitary group, accused of abuses in Ukraine and Africa, on the European Union’s list of terrorist organizations.

The text, without binding value, invites the French government “to mobilize diplomatically” so that the EU accedes to this request, which should make it possible to sanction more effectively the members of Wagner and their supporters, in particular financially.

Founded on 1^is May 2014, the paramilitary group Wagner, also known as PMC Wagner, ChVK Wagner or CHVK Vagner, works in the shadow of the Kremlin. Considered Putin’s secret army, made up of violent soldiers, the group sows terror in several countries, including Ukraine. The official mission of the militia is to ensure the defense of Russia’s external interests. The reality is different. Their real objective is to install pro-Kremlin zones all over the world, particularly in the Central African Republic.

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The birth of the group

Evgueni Prigojine and Dmitri Outkine are at the origin of this organization. The first is a former Russian prisoner. Prigozhin is also a former chef in the Kremlin kitchens. At that time, he got closer to Putin and the Russian army. To compose his group, he mainly enlists men coming out of prison.

Wagner was Dmitri Utkin’s nickname during his time in the Russian special forces. Neo-Nazi and admirer of the III^e Reich, his pseudonym comes from the German composer Richard Wagner.

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The beginning of maneuvers

The first intervention of the group dates back to 2014, in Crimea, during the annexation of the peninsula by Russia. The mercenaries cooperated with the Russian army in order to secure the region. They then headed to Syria in 2015 to protect oil installations in the east of the country. Then the military group set foot in Africa and deployed in the Central African Republic in 2018, in Libya in 2019 and in Mali in 2021.

In 2022, while mercenaries were deployed on the Ukrainian front, and in particular in Bakhmout, Yevgueni Prigojine began a standoff with Putin, threatening to withdraw if ammunition was not delivered to him. Prigojne even accuses the general staff of “treason of the fatherland”.

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