An advertising sign advertising the military company Wagner (in the back) that reads "Join the team of winners". © Alexander Zemlianichenko/AP/dpa
Russia's Wagner troupe is the most famous, but not the only, private army in Ukraine. Western intelligence agencies see a "paramilitarization". Is Putin's monopoly on the use of force in danger of slipping away?
Moscow – Yevgeny Prigozhin wants to give himself and his Wagner mercenaries a break from fighting after the extremely costly battle for the eastern Ukrainian city of Bakhmut. After a helicopter flight, the head of the private army Wagner proudly shows in a video an underground field camp in a forest with sandy soil: communal accommodation, kitchen, dining room and a sauna. All built of wood. Somewhere in Russia. There, the mercenaries are to equip themselves for new combat missions in Ukraine. But the force is far from the only paramilitary organization in the war in Ukraine, although private armies are not allowed in Russia.
It is true that Wagner has by far the greatest resources with tens of thousands of fighters, tanks, aircraft and heavy artillery - and is also active in Africa, for example. But Prigozhin himself confirmed that he is not fighting alone in Ukraine. The state-owned energy giant Gazprom is therefore active with private military companies and is said to have founded three: current, flame and torch.
There are a huge number of other organizations that question not only the role of the regular Russian army. In the meantime, there is already an open discussion as to whether Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin is not losing the state's monopoly on the use of force. Western intelligence agencies are already talking about "paramilitarization" in Russia.
Who finances the private military companies in Russia?
The private military companies are called Patriot, Storm, Redut and Jenot and, according to experts, are financed by oligarchs and large commodity companies. Officially, they often appear as security companies for strategically important objects, although state security agencies would be responsible for this.
But Russian media are now openly reporting that private companies are flourishing in the wake of the war against Ukraine. "The private military companies are a state outsourcing – a new technology in the field of warfare," analyst Sergei Yermakov of the Russian Institute for Strategic Research told the Moscow-based glossy magazine "Expert".
At the same time, these paramilitary companies operate in a legal grey area. Legislative proposals to legalize them have not progressed for years. Opponents of the Kremlin see the private armies as mafia-like structures that are supposed to help Putin win in Ukraine or, in the event of defeat, at least secure security and, at best, power for him and his people. Critics complain that these companies do not serve state interests, but individual oligarchs, groups and corporations that pay them.
What other groups are there besides Wagner?
Wagner's model, in particular, has long since set a precedent. Ramzan Kadyrov, the head of the Russian republic of Chechnya in the North Caucasus, who is himself active with his fighters in Ukraine, was enthusiastic about how "iron" Wagner acted. He said he wanted to create such an army himself after leaving the civil service – and compete with "our dear brother Yevgeny Prigozhin".
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Pro-Kremlin media repeatedly rave about how well organized, efficient and successful Wagner acts. For a long time, the power apparatus in Moscow acted as if Wagner were a phantom and had nothing to do with the Russian state. Meanwhile, Prigozhin is ubiquitous. The 61-year-old criticizes corruption, vanity and bureaucracy in the army. He holds Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and his Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov personally responsible for grievances and defeats.
While ordinary citizens would find themselves in prison for years because of such failures, Prigozhin rumbles as if he were untouchable. The Russian ultra-nationalist and former intelligence officer Igor Girkin, also known by the nom de guerre Strelkov, has just accused Prigozhin of declaring "war" on part of the army and elite – and planning a coup.
What criticism is there?
Girkin criticized Prigozhin's unacceptable "insults" against the Russian army as a crime and calls for steps by the Kremlin against the Putin confidant. "We have no other army and we need to make it a combat-capable tool," he stressed. If Moscow suffers a defeat in Kiev's planned counteroffensive, Russia is threatened with chaos by the end of the summer.
Russian political scientist Tatyana Stanovaya believes that Putin himself is still relatively strong in order to maintain the balance of power. "For the president, a private military company is an attribute, as it belongs to a great power with geopolitical ambitions," she says. However, Wagner has long since developed a life of his own – and Prigozhin herself has revolutionary views, she agrees. "War produces monsters whose ruthlessness and desperation can pose a challenge to the state." Even the slightest weakness could tip the system.
Last but not least, partisans and saboteurs are on the move in Russia, working against Russia's war machine. The fact that the Belgorod region, which is located on the border with Ukraine, has been under attack for days continues to cause great uncertainty. Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov also reported that he had come under fire. After complaints from fleeing and horrified citizens about why the Russian state is waging war in Ukraine but not protecting its own territory from attacks, he said that he himself had many more questions for the Ministry of Defence.
What is happening in the Belgorod region right now?
True, Minister Shoigu now promised to crack down. The ministry also reported that more than 70 fighters had been "destroyed" in the Belgorod region. But there - as well as in other border regions that have been repeatedly attacked - vigilante groups have long since formed, according to the authorities. Meanwhile, there are calls to equip these volunteer groups with weapons. In addition, private military companies are forming on the Crimean peninsula annexed by Russia – probably also because the regular army is not trusted enough.
With regard to the attacks in Belgorod, political scientist Abbas Gallyamov recalled that for decades the power apparatus had declared full-bodiedly that Russia was surrounded by enemies and was therefore expanding and strengthening its defenses. "Now that it's time to get down to business, people should suddenly defend themselves against the enemy," says Putin's former speechwriter. In view of the difficult situation in the war and the large number of armed groups, he now even sees the country on the verge of a revolution. Dpa
