Summary
Overview
This episode chronicles Yevgeny Prigozhin's transformation from restaurateur and disinformation specialist into a mercenary warlord. After meeting former Russian special forces lieutenant colonel Dmitry Utkin in 2014, Prigozhin establishes the Wagner Group, deploying mercenaries first in Ukraine's Donbass region, then expanding to Syria where they fight alongside Assad's forces. The episode details Wagner's brutal reputation, their business model of securing resource extraction deals, and culminates with the disastrous February 2018 battle in Syria where U.S. forces annihilated Wagner fighters, deepening Prigozhin's fury with Russia's Ministry of Defense.
The Birth of Wagner: Meeting Dmitry Utkin
In spring 2014, Prigozhin is introduced to Dmitry Utkin, a 44-year-old former Russian special forces lieutenant colonel with SS tattoos and fascist leanings. Utkin, whose callsign is 'Wagner' after Hitler's favorite composer, had fought in Chechnya and worked with other mercenary groups. Their meeting creates a perfect partnership - Prigozhin provides business acumen and Kremlin connections, while Utkin brings military expertise and a hunger for combat. The Wagner Group is named after Utkin's callsign, with fighters called 'musicians' and battles termed 'concerts.'
- Dmitry Utkin is a former Russian special forces lieutenant colonel with SS tattoos, Nazi eagle on chest, and fascist tendencies
- Utkin's military career stalled because he preferred fighting to advancement, so he left to join mercenary groups
- Utkin's callsign is 'Wagner' after the composer who was Hitler's favorite, which becomes the group's name
- Prigozhin brings entrepreneurial skills and Kremlin connections while Utkin provides military expertise
" He's into weird paganism, Slavic rituals, racial purity with fascist tendencies. "
" Prigozhin is the kind of deal maker isn't it we saw last time how he's understood that the Kremlin needed help with social media and we're trolling and he was going to offer a service there and he's going to understand now that the Kremlin needs a little bit of help with men of violence and mercenary work "
Ukraine 2014: Wagner's First Deployment
Wagner makes its combat debut in Ukraine's Donbass region in 2014, where pro-Russian separatists are struggling against Ukrainian forces. Starting with just 200 fighters, Wagner helps open supply corridors and achieves notable successes like downing a Ukrainian transport plane that kills 49 servicemen. The mercenaries receive funding directly from the Kremlin rather than the Ministry of Defense, creating early tensions. Wagner also appears to conduct 'cleaning' operations, assassinating separatist leaders Moscow couldn't control, earning them the nickname 'the cleaners.'
- Wagner deploys to Luhansk in the Donbass with about 200 fighters to support struggling pro-Russian separatist forces
- They down a Ukrainian military transport in June 2014, killing 49 Ukrainian servicemen
- Funding comes directly from the Kremlin, creating early tensions with the Ministry of Defense led by Sergei Shoigu
- Wagner conducts assassinations of pro-Moscow separatist leaders who won't follow Moscow's strategy, becoming known as 'the cleaners'
- By 2014 Wagner grows to about 500 fighters, then maybe 1,000 before the Minsk agreements freeze the conflict
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