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What is Russia's Wagner Group of mercenaries in Ukraine? What is Russia's Wagner Group of mercenaries in Ukraine?
(4 months later)
A Wagner member in the Donbas region in 2014/15 Some 20,000 mercenaries are believed to be fighting for Russia in Ukraine.
Ukrainian artillery is said to have struck a headquarters of the shadowy Russian mercenary group Wagner, in Luhansk in the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine. They belong to an organisation called the Wagner Group, which has been used in Russian military operations all over the world.
The Wagner Group went to the region in 2014 to help pro-Russian separatists oust Ukrainian forces. Who are the Wagner Group's mercenaries?
British military intelligence says 1,000 mercenaries are deployed there. The Wagner Group's fighters now make up about 10% of Russia's forces in Ukraine, according to UK government officials.
The group has been active recently in Ukraine, Syria and African countries, and has repeatedly been accused of war crimes and human rights abuses. Thousands are raw recruits from Russian prisons.
The Wagner Group started recruiting in large numbers after the Kremlin had trouble finding people for the regular army, UK intelligence officials say.
It's thought the organisation had previously had only 5,000 fighters, most of whom were former soldiers including many from elite regiments.
The Wagner Group has also adopted a higher profile - including a large new headquarters in St Petersburg.
"It is openly recruiting in Russian cities, on billboards, and is being named in Russian media as a patriotic organisation," says Dr Samuel Ramani, of the Royal United Services Institute think tank.
What is the Wagner Group doing in Ukraine?What is the Wagner Group doing in Ukraine?
In the weeks leading up to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, it is thought Wagner Group mercenaries were involved in a number of so-called "false flag" attacks in eastern Ukraine which were designed to give Russia a pretext for attacking. The Wagner Group has been heavily involved in Russian efforts to capture the city of Bakhmut, in eastern Ukraine.
Wagner first went to the region in 2014, says Tracey German, professor of conflict and security at King's College London. Ukrainian troops say Wagner fighters have been sent into attacks in large numbers over open ground, with many killed as a result.
"About 1,000 of its mercenaries supported the pro-Russian militias fighting for control of the Luhansk and Donetsk regions," she says. Wagner Group commander requests asylum in Norway
Three Wagner Group mercenaries are alleged by Ukrainian prosecutors to have committed war crimes in the village of Motyzhyn near Kyiv in April, alongside regular Russian troops. After Russia claimed to have captured the town of Soledar, near Bakhmut, a row broke out between its defence ministry and the Wagner Group over who should get the credit.
The prosecutors said these war crimes included murder and torture. Two of the Wagner mercenaries named are from Belarus and the other is from Russia. At first, the defence ministry did not mention that the Wagner Group was involved in the fighting. However, it then conceded that its mercenaries had played a "courageous and selfless" role.
German intelligence suspects Wagner mercenaries may also have been involved in the killing of civilians in Bucha, during the withdrawal of Russian forces from around Kyiv.
Now, says Dr Samuel Ramani, associate fellow at the Royal United Services Institute, members of the Wagner Group are fighting alongside regular troops in the Donbas region.
"The Wagner Group played an active role in capturing cities like Popasna and Severodonetsk in Luhansk," he says.
"Nowadays, it is an informal, unofficial unit of the Russian army, for which no casualties are reported."
As well as reportedly hitting the Wagner Group base in Poposna in Luhansk, Ukraine's forces also claim to have hit another bases in nearby Stakhanov in June.
How was the Wagner Group started?How was the Wagner Group started?
A BBC investigation into the Wagner Group highlighted the believed involvement of a 51-year-old former Russian army officer, Dmitri Utkin. He is thought to have founded Wagner and given it its name - his own former call-sign. A BBC investigation into the Wagner Group highlighted the believed involvement of a former Russian army officer, Dmitri Utkin.
He is a veteran of the Chechen wars, a former special forces officer and a lieutenant colonel with the GRU, Russia's military intelligence service. A veteran of Russia's wars in Chechnya, he is thought to have founded Wagner and named it after his former radio call sign.
The Wagner Group first went into action during Russia's annexation of Crimea in 2014, says Prof German. The current head is Yevgeny Prigozhin, a rich businessman nicknamed "Putin's chef" because he provided catering for the Kremlin.
"Its mercenaries are thought to be some of the 'little green men' who occupied the region," she says. Mr Prigozhin used to deny any links to the Wagner Group, but now speaks openly about the group's operations in Ukraine.
"Running a mercenary army is against the Russian constitution," she adds. "However, Wagner provides the government with a force which is deniable. Wagner can get involved abroad and the Kremlin can say: 'It has nothing to do with us'." Wagner leader Yevgeny Prigozhin has been seen in leaked footage addressing prisoners in Russia
Some suggest Russia's military intelligence agency, the GRU, secretly funds and oversees the Wagner Group. The Wagner Group's first operation was helping Russia annex Crimea in 2014, says Tracey German, professor of conflict and security at King's College London.
Mercenary sources have told the BBC that its training base in Mol'kino in southern Russia is next to a Russian army base. Troops appeared on the streets of Crimea at the time in uniforms without badges or markings, and were known as the "little green men".
Russia has consistently denied that Wagner has any connection with the state. "Its mercenaries are thought to be some of the 'little green men' who occupied the region," says Prof German.
The BBC investigation that identified Utkin's links to the group also highlights the role of Yevgeny Prigozhin, the oligarch known as "Putin's chef" - so-called because he rose from being a restaurateur and caterer for the Kremlin. After that, about 1,000 Wagner Group mercenaries helped Russian-backed separatist forces in eastern Ukraine fight the Ukrainian army.
Many of Mr Prigozhin's companies are currently under US sanctions for what it calls his "malign political and economic influence around the globe". He has always denied any connection with the Wagner Group. In the weeks before Russia's invasion, it is thought Wagner carried out "false flag" attacks to give the Kremlin a pretext for attacking.
A November 2011 photo shows Yevgeny Prigozhin (L) assisting Vladimir Putin at a banquet near Moscow Russia-supporting Wagner mercenary numbers soar
In September 2022, Mr Prigozhin was shown on film trying to recruit Russian prisoners to fight for the Wagner Group in Ukraine. Where else is the Wagner Group operating?
Mr Prigozhin told prisoners their sentences would be commuted if they signed up. Since 2015, Wagner Group mercenaries have been in Syria, fighting alongside pro-government forces and guarding oilfields.
Where has the Wagner Group been active? There are also Wagner Group mercenaries in Libya, supporting the forces loyal to General Khalifa Haftar.
In 2015 the Wagner Group started operating in Syria, fighting alongside pro-government forces and guarding oilfields. The Central African Republic (CAR) has invited the Wagner Group to guard diamond mines, and it is thought to be guarding gold mines in Sudan.
It has been active in Libya since 2016, supporting the forces loyal to General Khalifa Haftar. It's thought that up to 1,000 Wagner mercenaries took part in Haftar's advance on the official government in Tripoli in 2019.
In 2017, the Wagner Group was invited into the Central African Republic (CAR) to guard diamond mines. It is also reported to be working in Sudan, protecting gold mines.
Wagner members in SyriaWagner members in Syria
In 2020, the US Treasury said Wagner had been "acting as a cover" in these countries for Mr Prighozin's mining companies, such as M Invest and Lobaye Invest - and placed them under sanctions. The government of Mali, in West Africa, is using the Wagner Group against Islamic militant groups.
More recently, the Wagner Group was invited in by the government of Mali, in West Africa, to provide security against Islamic militant groups. Its arrival in 2021 influenced the decision by France to pull its troops out of the country. Yevgeny Prigozhin is thought to make money from Wagner Group operations abroad.
In Burkina Faso, Colonel Ibrahim Traoré, who took power in a military coup, has indicated that his government is willing to work with the Wagner Group to combat IS militants, who control large parts of the country. The US Treasury says he uses its presence to enrich mining companies which he owns and has placed them under sanctions.
Dr Ramani says that outside Ukraine, Wagner Group has about 5,000 mercenaries in total operating across the world. An unnamed White House spokesman told Reuters that Mr Prigozhin may want the Wagner Group to capture Bakhmut so he can control salt and gypsum mines in the area.
He says that since the start of the war in Ukraine, the Wagner Group has become much more public.
"It is openly recruiting in Russian cities, on billboards, and is being named in Russian media as a patriotic organisation."
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Russian Mercenaries: Inside the Wagner GroupRussian Mercenaries: Inside the Wagner Group
Russian Mercenaries: Inside the Wagner GroupRussian Mercenaries: Inside the Wagner Group
What crimes is Wagner alleged to have committed outside Ukraine? What crimes is the Wagner Group alleged to have committed?
In January, a former commander claimed asylum in Norway after deserting from the mercenary outfit. He claims to have witnessed war crimes in Ukraine.
Three Wagner Group mercenaries are alleged by Ukrainian prosecutors to have killed and tortured civilians near Kyiv in April 2022, alongside regular Russian troops.
German intelligence says Wagner mercenaries may also have massacred civilians in Bucha in March 2022, during the withdrawal of Russian forces from the Kyiv region.
The United Nations and the French government have accused Wagner mercenaries of committing rapes and robberies against civilians in the Central African Republic, and the EU has imposed sanctions as a result.The United Nations and the French government have accused Wagner mercenaries of committing rapes and robberies against civilians in the Central African Republic, and the EU has imposed sanctions as a result.
In 2020, the United States military accused Wagner mercenaries of having planted landmines and other improvised explosive devices in and around the Libyan capital, Tripoli.In 2020, the United States military accused Wagner mercenaries of having planted landmines and other improvised explosive devices in and around the Libyan capital, Tripoli.
"Wagner Group's reckless use of landmines and booby traps are harming innocent civilians," said Rear Admiral Heidi Berg, director of intelligence at the US Army's Africa Command.
EU alarm at Russian mercenaries in Central Africa
Russian group Wagner 'fighting in Libya'
Who are Russia's shadowy mercenaries fighting in Syria?